


don'tmakemewannafallinlove

by cryystal_m00n, jaeyongficfest



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Kindergarten & Pre-school, Getting Together, Idiots in Love, Implied Sexual Content, Kissing, M/M, Mutual Pining, Obliviousness, Single Parents, Too Much Blushing, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-07
Updated: 2020-05-23
Packaged: 2020-11-26 22:23:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 21,069
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20937722
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cryystal_m00n/pseuds/cryystal_m00n, https://archiveofourown.org/users/jaeyongficfest/pseuds/jaeyongficfest
Summary: the man was beautiful, ethereal, touched by the gods themselves, sculpted by michelangelo, a work of art; jaehyun couldn’t look away, nor could he think.“this is appa, mr. lee! he’s not usually this dumb, i promise!”





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> to the prompter, i hope you enjoy this and that it works with what you had imagined  
to everyone else who happens to read this, please enjoy!

the first time he ever met mr. lee, jaehyun had almost _ died._ it was during jaemin’s first week at his new kindergarten, a private one called _ moonmoon_. johnny had helped him find the kindergarten when they had to move from their cozy, yet rundown apartment. 

jaehyun had expected a nice old man who smelled like brownies and who looked like every other grandpa since well… that’s the kindergarten teacher he had when he was a child. he hadn’t been mentally _ or _ emotionally prepared for the _ literal _ epitome of sunshine that greeted him. mr. lee was _ far _ from being a grandpa. he was young, a few years older than jaehyun at most, but everything about him, from the warm oversized sweater, to the _ fucking _ flower tucked safely behind his ear, to the glint in his big, doe-like eyes, to the slight peachy blush adorning his cheeks, _ screamed _ youth. 

jaemin was holding onto mr. lee’s hidden hand, but the moment he caught a glimpse of his father, he bolted straight into his open arms. for a moment, jaehyun forgot about the teacher still looking at them. it had been a long day at work, and the only thing that brought him a little bit of peace was jaemin and his bubbly laughter. 

“appa, appa! mr. lee showed me his plushie collection! can you buy me a seal please, please, please, _ please_,” he draws out the syllables, pleading eyes stabbing at jaehyun’s weak heart. 

jaehyun ruffled the boy’s dark hair, pulling him even closer until jaemin’s arms were wrapped around his neck. it was only then he realized mr. lee’s presence once again. the teacher had stayed in the same spot, and jaehyun might be dramatic, but he swore that the man was an angel, with the halo of sunshine around his head. 

“i’m lee taeyong. i don’t think we’ve had the chance to meet yet,” he said, crouching down to be at the same level with both the child and the father. “i am jaeminnie’s teacher. i’m sorry i couldn’t meet you when you first registered him. i managed to catch a cold just before fall started.”

jaehyun just stared at him, unable to say anything. the man was beautiful, ethereal, touched by the gods themselves, sculpted by michelangelo, a work of art; jaehyun couldn’t look away, nor could he think. 

jaemin nudged his father, breaking out the reverie. “this is appa, mr. lee! he’s not usually this dumb, i promise! he can talk like you and me, but a cat seems to have gotten appa’s tongue,” the child explained, making the teacher laugh. 

it sounded like angel choirs singing, like trinkets and bells blown by a gentle wind. jaehyun wanted nothing more than to hear it for the rest of his life. “jaemin-ah, i don’t think you should talk like that about your father. i’m sure he’s just very tired.” taeyong laughed once again when jaehyun’s eyes widened, seemingly having realized what his son had said just then. 

trying to take his eyes from the angel in front of him, jaehyun pushed his hand forward, focusing on it as he said, “jung jaehyun. it’s a pleasure to meet you, taeyong-ssi.” he managed to speak without stumbling over his own words, which jaehyun was proud of. 

taeyong shook it, his long fingers wrapping nicely around jaehyun’s own. the man’s sweater sleeve almost covered his hand as well. it was… cute, in a way that made jaehyun want to squish him to his chest. he had to let go of it before his intentions of snuggling with jaemin’s teacher became too obvious.

jaemin finally let go of jaehyun’s neck, jumping from his arms and impatiently pulling on his father’s coat. “can we go appa? waffles probably misses me already,” he pouted down at the two men, melting both of their hearts. 

“sure little guy,” jaehyun said, standing up as well. he made sure to help taeyong up just so that he could held onto the teacher’s hand for one more second. “i’ll see you again?” he addressed the question to taeyong.

“well, i assume that since you’re jaeminnie’s father, you’d come pick him up again, right?” when jaehyun simply blushed, taeyong continued, “yes, jaehyun-ssi, you will see me again.” there was no malice hidden behind the words, only pure amusement. 

“swell!” he said, cringing at how _ forced _he had sounded. already getting bored of the conversation, jaemin began to drag his father out of the kindergarten, shouting his goodbye over his shoulder.

that was how jaehyun finally met mr. lee, and how he had also managed to become so enamoured with him that he kept on thinking of taeyong more and more with each day that passed by. 

* * *

the kindergarten creative activities mean drawing and creating things that the parents can put on the fridge and admire while nursing headaches with immense amounts of coffee. there are a plethora of drawings on their fridge, ranging from the classic scenery with the sun that wears sunglasses (a very ironic concept, if jaehyun thinks about it) to drawings of people shaped like roblox characters. jaehyun loves every single one of them. 

he knows that sometimes, teachers ask the kids to draw a family portrait, he had to do that too, years ago. he expected jaemin to come back with a nice picture of both of them as cool roblox people, maybe even a sun with sunglasses and a snapback too to tie everything together. he, by no means, expect a call from taeyong asking him to come to the school since they have _ to talk_. 

“what happened? did jaemin get into a fight?” jaehyun asks. he tries not to sound too panicked, but as a parent, he can’t help but think of the worst possible situation for which taeyong could call him.

_ “no, no! it’s nothing bad, i promise,” _ taeyong rushes to say, _ “the kids had to draw a family portrait today and i guess since jaemin saw that almost everyone drew two or more parents he didn’t want to feel left out so…” _

“yes? what is it taeyong? did he draw johnny and ten?” it wouldn’t be the first time jaemin thinks of them as his parents too. he does spend a lot of time with ten after all.

_ “not exactly. he drew me as the second parent. i thought maybe we should talk about it?” _ taeyong’s voice is clearly filled with nervousness to a point where jaehyun finds himself wanting to pinch his cheeks again. 

“are you asking me out, taeyong-ssi?” jaehyun questions, fighting back the blush that threatens to spread across his face. he may be confident when approaching other men, but _ god, _ even just teasing taeyong over the phone turns him into an anxious mess of red cheeks, clammy hands and a twisted tongue. 

_ “th-that’s not… i meant it as in… oh would you look at that? jisungie needs my help! g-goodbye, jaehyun-ssi!” _ he hangs up so fast that jaehyun is sure he must’ve broke his screen with how hard he probably pressed the end call button. 

he can’t wipe the stupid smile off his face for the rest of the day. and if, when he goes to pick jaemin up, he winks at taeyong before running into the rainbow colored fence, well, he can at least be proud of the blush he got from the elder. it was worth embarrassing himself and ending up with an equally red flushed face.

* * *

if there is one thing his friends like to do every time they meet, it would probably be teasing jaehyun until he flips them off and threatens them that he will pee in their shoes. today is no exception. 

it starts off with ten pulling on jaemin’s tongue to give him _ all _ the details that he knows jaehyun keeps from him. and jaemin loves ten a bit too much to the point where with just one right word, jaemin begins talking and spilling every little thing that has happened during the week they haven’t been over. 

“and mr. lee is _ so _ pretty, hyung! appa keeps looking at him whenever he comes to pick me up! i want mr. lee to be my other appa since he has many plushies and maybe if he was living with me and pa, he would share them with me. you think appa will marry mr. lee soon, tennie-hyung? because i want to wear a dress to the wedding! can you make me a pretty blue dress, hyung? and can you add seals on it?” jaemin talks so _ casually _ about it as if he can’t sense the absolute _ joy _ and _ smugness _ that creeps from the elder. 

“is that so, jaem?” ten hums, leading the child away from where jaehyun, johnny and sicheng are seated at the kitchen table. “tell me more, baby.”

jaemin’s high voice gets farther and farther until they can just hear the door to the boy’s room close. 

“so you got a crush on jaem’s teacher?” johnny asks, a glint of humor in his eyes. 

“no i don’t! why would i have a crush on him? are you nuts, john? he’s my son’s teacher, i can’t date him!” jaehyun protests. he frowns at his friends when they don’t seem to believe his meaningless words. of course he has a crush on taeyong! he’d have to be _ blind _ not to be attracted to such a beautiful man. 

sicheng snorts, reaching for the last of the strawberries on johnny’s plate. “what does he look like?”

“i don’t know, like a normal guy,” jeahyun shrugs, promptly fixating his eyes on his unfinished waffles. they’re a bit burned on the sides, but they’re still edible. 

“like a normal guy as in normally eh like johnny-hyung or abnormally stunning like me?” the chinese man asks. he pretends not to hear the offended gasp johnny graces them with. 

“like… i don’t know, he’s alright i guess? he’s a bit shorter than me, nice cheekbones, pretty long and dark lashes, glittery make-up but that’s kinda subtle. he’s always wearing these big sweaters and hoodies which makes him look even tinier and i just want to pinch his cheeks and hug him. his hair seems kinda dead, not gonna lie, but it still looks surprisingly soft? like if i were to thread my fingers and pull on it, it would probably feel very fluffy. oh and his eyes…” he lets his chin rest on his palm as he looks at nothing in particular, “they’re so big and full of innocence…”

“anything else?” johnny says.

“_god_, johnny, his voice? it’s heavenly. he’s an angel, like the sun come to life!” 

“but you don’t like him?” sicheng speaks around a mouthful of strawberries, waffles and whipped cream. 

without thinking, he answers, “i dont.” johnny and sicheng look at him. they _ truly _ look at him. “goddamnit, i think i have a crush on jaemin’s kindergarten teacher,” jaehyun sighs.

the eldest claps him on the back, sending him forward until his chin almost hits the plate in front of him. “hell yes, bro! you’re finally getting some type of action!”

jaehyun glares at him, but sicheng continues where johnny leaves it off. “it’s been what? four years since you’ve last gone on a date? you went out with woojin right before getting jaem?”

“and don’t forget that date he went on with sooyoung! remember how he left in the middle of the date because ten called him to ask where jaem’s diapers were?” johnny laughs, so loud that it makes jaehyun flinch. 

“yeah, yeah, my love life is a sad-sad thing, thank you for reminding me, guys, really feeling the love.”

just as he says this, ten comes back holding jaemin in his arms. he puts the boy down in johnny’s lap, taking a seat on his other leg. “yo, did you know jae has a fat crush on jaem’s teacher?” he asks, clearly enjoying the situation more than jaehyun. 

the man groans, his forehead actually hitting the table this time. “his name is taeyong, can you just stop calling him jaem’s teacher at least?”

ten stays silent for a second, but then he asks again, “yo, did you know jae has a fat crush on taeyong?”

jaehyun can’t even flip him off, this is his living hell. 

* * *

nowadays, jaehyun stays behind longer, when he comes to pick up his son. jaemin always runs off from his hold, going to play with his friends for a few more minutes, and jaehyun’s only form of entertainment _ is _ taeyong. not that the teacher minds it. he seems to love talking to jaehyun as much as the younger does. sure, their conversations do end with both of them blushing and refusing to make eye-contact, but they still make jaehyun smile even hours after he gets home. 

they were talking about how jaemin’s been begging his father for anything seal related and how jaehyun has been browsing the internet in order to find the biggest plushie available to be shipped to seoul when taeyong says out of nowhere, “ you must be a great parent to jaemin, jaehyun-ssi.”

jaehyun stops dead in his tracks, almost dropping his laptop case on the ground. he doesn’t, jaehyun has enough self-control over his body. he just chokes. “the painting on the building is astounding, no harsh lines, i love it!” he panicked, but it’s not his fault; no one has ever complimented his parenting skills before. not in a way that feels sincere at least. 

“i mean it! jaeminnie talks about you almost every time someone is willing to listen about how his appa burned the chicken again and how his appa helped him paint his room rainbow and how his ap--”

“okay, that’s enough, taeyong-ssi!” his cheeks burn in shame. he doesn’t want taeyong to think of him as a parent who can’t even cook some simple fried chicken. god, he probably told him he’s a great parent just to ease the next blow. 

“i think it’s cute, you know? you’re really young but i can see how many sacrifices you’ve done for jaem, how you’ve probably learned everything as you went.” taeyong’s smile reaches his eyes, his hand pulling at jaehyun’s fingers nervously. 

“thank you. it means a lot coming from you… jaemin thinks of you as his other dad after all…”

despite the redness that went below his sweater, taeyong still finds the confidence to wink as he says, “well, since we’re so close to raising a child together, you can call me hyung. unless you want to drop the niceties and go straight to the pet names?”

jaehyun chokes again. “h-hyung sounds great!”

the elder just gives him a bright smile, one that makes jaehyun feel fuzzy and giddy on the inside, and lets his hand linger on jaehyun’s for one second too much to be considered friendly. 

* * *

his sister is back in town, something about a wedding she has to attend to. that means jaemin screaming and following soojung everywhere she goes, asking her to pick him up and take him to the arcade. the boy knows that his aunt is whipped for him and that she would do anything he asks of her, and _ boy _ does jaemin take advantage of it?

jaehyun isn’t mad about it. soojung taking care of jaemin gives him some time for himself, time he uses by staying late at work and finishing projects. it’s by no means a healthy way of using this new freedom, but work is more important than self-care. especially when he is almost a month behind. 

he has coffee and energy drinks to help him power through the agonizing hours over hours of staring at a brightly lit computer screen. that and the thought of listening to jaemin ramble about his day when he gets home. he makes it through the week of soojung’s stay with just a few lost brain cells lost in favor of being awake. 

jaehyun thinks he’s gotten away pretty easily. 

* * *

“jaem’s teacher glared at me every time i picked the baby up from school. care to tell me something, little brother?” soojung asks on their way to the airport. she’s eyeing jaehyun closely, even if the man can’t look at his sister, eyes focused on the road. 

“i have no idea what you’re talking about, soo. maybe he just glared at you because _ you _ glared at him first?”

“i don’t glare at pretty people, jae,” the woman huffs, rolling her eyes. 

“you glared at amber though? and at jongin, and jennie, and seulgi, and naeun. do you want me to continue?”

“yeah, but i ended up with a boyfriend and a lot of girlfriends after glaring at them, so maybe that’s just my technique of getting laid.” she looks out the window, avoiding jaehyun’s sharp look. she is sure that he could’ve cut her with just one look. 

“are you trying to hook up with taeyong?” jaehyun asks, voice calculated to not let anything slip out. 

soojung turns to smile at him, innocently, the mischief hidden carefully behind it. “it seems like you’ve already caught his eye, brother dear. so don’t worry, even if i had the smallest amount of intention to sleep with him, considering that i do have amber right now, he wouldn’t even think about me,” she says. “now you better send me pictures of jaem’s halloween costume or else i will fly back to korea to smack you.”

jaehyun pretends not to notice the way she changed the subjects and chooses instead to accept his sister’s challenge. 

* * *

_ all kids get into at least a fight in kindergarten. _ at least, that’s what doyoung, one of the teachers that greets him when he gets at _ moonmoon _ says to him. he got a phone call, not even from taeyong himself but from the principal of the school, taeil, to inform him that jaemin took part into an altercation and that if he could come, it would be greatly appreciated. 

jaehyun obviously ran from the office in .5 seconds after hanging up. he didn’t even inform the manager, too worried about jaemin’s wellbeing to utter more than a hurried explanation to his coworker. 

doyoung guides him to taeil’s office, asking him to take a seat on the unusually tiny chairs outside and to wait until someone calls him inside. after that, he disappears inside the office, leaving jaehyun alone with a few colored pencils next to him. jaehyun glares at the giant plushie across the room, pouring all of his negative emotions out and hoping that they will reach the pink unicorn. 

ten minutes later, the door opens again, this time taeyong’s head peeking out, his freshly dyed pink hair falling in his eyes. “jaehyun-ssi? you can come in now.”

jaehyun rushes to stand up, cursing the uncomfortable chair. he looks at the elder, searching for something, _ anything _ that could tell him if jaemin is ok, or at the very least, if he is in any trouble. 

when he enters the office, he finds jaemin looking at the ground, sucking on his finger. it’s a nervous habit he’s picked up from jaehyun, but instead of biting his nails and the skin around them like his father, jaemin just sucks on the digit and frowns. 

taeil stands up, smiling reassuringly at him. “mr. jung, i’m glad you could come. there’s nothing to worry, jaemin isn’t in trouble.”

“ok, that’s great. can anyone tell me _ what _actually happened? because i don’t think jaemin would just start a fight out of nowhere,” jaehyun finally takes a seat when taeyong’s gentle hand pushes him down. the teacher sits next to jaemin, taking the boy’s thumb out of his mouth. 

“i punched him because he said injunnie can’t like art because it’s girly! i didn’t do anything wrong, appa! he was mean to my best friend and i just showed him what happens when you put a gender to one specific thing! you always tell me to stand up in front of people who hurt my friends, appa!” jaemin explains it, his hand grasping onto taeyong’s. 

“is that so, baby?” jaehyun smiles at his son, a wave of pride flowing through him. 

“we’ve already talked to byeongho’s parents. he is in trouble for--”

“talking shit about one of the students and using the whole _ you can’t do that because you’re not a girl _ bs,” doyoung interrupts taeil, dodging the elder’s hand as he reached for him. “look, i’m right, hyung. you can’t say i’m not.” 

“i know doie, thank you for input.” taeil rolls his eyes but jaehyun can see the fond look playing on his face. “jaemin will just get a warning for punching the boy.”

“so he’s free to go, sir?” jaehyun asks.

“yep. but you better not come back in here because you punched another child, jaemin. if you come back i will have to cut down your recess,” taeil’s demeanour changes, turning more serious than what it was like a few seconds ago. when jaemin nods, he breaks into a smile again, and pulls a jar of lollipops from somewhere under his table. “you may take one.”

jaemin perks up, his tiny arm sticking out to reach into the glass jar. he pulls out three lollies, on accident. taeil shakes his head, but closes the lid as a sign for him to keep all of them. 

“thank you, mr. moon! i’ll make sure to bring you and mr. bunny moon a cake tomorrow!” he smiles at taeil and doyoung, before whispering to his father, “appa, can you help me make mr. moon and mr. bunny moon a cake? and can we not burn it?”

the three men laugh, whilst jaehyun flushes red once more at the cruel reminder that he can’t make anything in the kitchen without burning it at least a bit. he switches to english, “jaemin if you stop embarrassing me in front of your teacher i will buy you three seal things, anything you want.”

jaemin nods excitedly, giving his father a broad grin. “i want another plushie for cat and a hoodie and a cap too. maybe a pillow? can you embroider cat on a pillow for me appa?"

he picks up his son, silently thanking taeil for his understanding, and leaves the office. taeyong is quick to follow him, closing the door to taeil’s office quietly. 

“i wasn’t surprised jaemin faught someone. his mom looked pretty badass, you know?” taeyong doesn’t seem to notice the confusion that flashes across his face. 

“his what now?”

“his mom? uh, she came to pick him up like… all of last week? really pretty, kinda tall, wearing designer clothes?” taeyong’s cheeks flush when jaehyun doesn’t stop staring at him after five full minutes have passed. “i mean, i’m sorry, i shouldn’t have said anything, i should go.”

“soojung is my sister, yongie. my _ actual_, related sister. and she’s very much in love with another girl,” jaehyun smiles. he understands the assumptions, he really does, but why would he think that _ soojung _ of all people, could be his _ wife_? he hears a voice that sounds a lot like ten’s saying _ disgusting _ in his head. jaehyun agrees. 

before taeyong can apologize again, jaehyun smiles again and ruffles taeyong’s --_ very soft_, his brain supplies-- hair. “don’t worry about it, ok, yong? i have to take him now, but i’ll see you tomorrow?”

taeyong nods, his cheeks as pink as his hair. “see you tomorrow,” he says, voice small and almost _ shy_. jaehyun ruffles his hair one more time, before leaving. he has to listen to jaemin talk about how badass he was when he punched byeongho, and he is so proud of his son that he buys him two scoops of ice cream. 

* * *

jaehyun realizes that he wants to have taeyong in his life for the rest of it when jaemin tells him that the teacher stood up for him, the same way he did for renjun. this time, jaemin has been the target for bullying, since he went to school wearing one of the new dresses ten designed for him (it had a bunch of seals). 

“mr. lee said i don’t have to worry about it though. he said i’m stronger and braver than him anyway and that i could’ve handled those bullies alone had it not been for cat who was in my arms. you know cathrine doesn’t like being away from me, appa, i couldn’t put her down. she’s a fussy seal.”

_ i’m going to marry him._

* * *

at jaemin’s old school, jaehyun always thought of the teacher-parent meetings as a bother. there wasn’t much to talk about four year old kids anyway, and it’s not like he enjoyed the company of his old teacher either. sure, ms. kim was a great old lady who _ did _ smell like cakes and sweets, but she wasn’t _ taeyong_. 

“thank you for staying after, jaehyun,” taeyong says, as he looks around the class for any leftover traces of cookie crumbs or any spilled juice. 

“i don’t mind! i used to help around at jaem’s old kindergarten.” big lie. “besides, i can’t let you clean this class up all by yourself, hyung.” truth. “we’re taking care of my child together so we have to take care of yours too,” he has no idea why he added this last part, but to make it seem like he planned it and not just found the rest of the sentence along the way, he points around the empty classroom. 

“that’s sweet, jaehyun, but i do have an actual child, you know?” taeyong offers him a smile. 

“you do?” 

of course he does, he’s probably married too. oh god, he’s boo boo the fool. why did he even make that joke? what if a giant beast is going to come break all of his bones because he dared to look at his husband? he’s doomed. 

the elder claps excitedly, and rushes to jaehyun’s side, phone already out. “i do! see, this is ruby!” he shows him a photo of… a dog. “she’s pretty old now and she really likes to sleep, but she’s a great child. when i go and visit my mama, ruby always comes to greet me! sometimes, i do feel like she forgets about me since i don’t get to see her often, but i hope i’m wrong…”

“i’m sure she remembers you, hyung. dogs are smart, and even if they only meet you once in their lifetime, they will still remember you,” he says, swiping left, thinking he will find another photo of ruby. he is met with the sight of taeyong, hair ruffled as if he just woke up, his presumably naked body covered by a giant stuffed toy. his lips are parted and there is a blush across his cheeks, but what makes jaehyun almost pop a boner right then and there is the lust in taeyong’s eyes, something that pulls jaehyun in. it makes him wonder what was he thinking of before taking the photo. 

he swipes back and pushes the phone, showing ruby and not that sinful picture of taeyong, into the elder’s hands. 

jaehyun stayed silent for the rest of the clean up. he tries to hide his semi hard dick with anything that’s not see through or a toy, but when he finally leaves, he can see the way taeyong’s eyes flicker to his crotch before going crimson. 

* * *

jaehyun has an undoubtable dilemma. he has no _ fucking _ clue what _ the adventures of shark prince and kitten boy _ is. but that’s not all, no, jaehyun’s life is not that easy; jaemin keeps asking his father to tell that story _ every night_. it’s gotten to the point where jaemin can’t even fall asleep unless he starts bullshiting whatever this story is. he knows it’s something taeyong tells the kids, but he is clueless about the plot of it. jaehyun is pretty sure he even killed one of them, something that he assumes taeyong has never done. 

“and then, the shark prince had to fight the people of the land because--”

“_appa_, i told you that the shark prince is called seungmin! and that kitten boy is ilhoon! you’re not doing it like mr. lee does. it’s wrong!” jaemin whines and pouts at his father, trying to get him to do something right by just using his adorable puppy eyes. 

turns out that taeyong is a good teacher and he uses different voices for all of the characters (which there are a lot, jaehyun lost the narrative line after jaemin started talking about a robin and a turtle, both princes as well.). besides the voices, taeyong also gestures wildly, engaging with the kids in the stories. 

their bedtime story ends with _ jaemin _ being the one who retells the tales of shark prince and kitten boy. he falls asleep just from exhaustion of gesturing and changing the voice he uses every other line. 

during the third night when it happens again, jaehyun gets so frustrated that after jaemin falls asleep, he calls taeyong and demands the elder to tell him everything there is to know about _ the adventures of shark prince and kitten boy _ because his son hasn’t shut up about it for almost a week now and he _ is _ going insane. 

taeyong agrees to meet with him the next day, probably because he can sense the pure desperation in jaehyun’s voice. again, there is a voice in his head that sounds like ten merged with sicheng who tells him that there may be a possibility, brief, almost minute, that taeyong may actually _ want _to spend time with jaehyun. 

the same way he does in real life, he ignores ten and sicheng’s voices, even though they may hold a bit of truth. 

* * *

taeyong gives him the book, and he can’t help but notice the faint _ lee taeyong _ written under the big and colorful title. he had no idea taeyong is a writer, but somehow, the thought of the elder spending days and nights over stories for kids to make them feel included and loved makes sense. 

they start seeing each other more and more, outside of the scheduled school meetings. there’s always books with them, and the hang-outs turn into reading dates. jaehyun doesn’t think taeyong considers them dates, per se, but he’s too excited to be close to the elder, to see him get overly excited about a certain book. jaehyun loves the way his eyes sparkle even more than usual. 

it’s the way taeyong seems to become another person when it comes to his favorite books, how jaehyun can pinpoint the ones in which taeyong has stepped into; the ones in which taeyong had found himself. 

they spend so much time together that jaehyun ends up buying books after books that he thinks taeyong will enjoy. he always finds them close to taeyong after he gives them to him. in his bag, on his desk at school, even in his car. 

jaehyun finally learns how to tell stories of the shark prince and kitten boy thanks to taeyong, and after each successful bedtime story, he makes sure to send a photo of jaemin, sleeping and cuddling with cat, to taeyong. the pink haired man always responds with tens of hundreds of heart emojis. 

* * *

“fuck!” jaehyun swears when he drops a fork on the floor. he’s tired and he just wanted to eat his food in peace without any interruptions. 

little feet pad onto the wooden floor as jaemin hurries to the kitchen. his tiny fist is raised as he begins to scold jaehyun. “appa, mr. lee says that’s a bad word! bad words shouldn’t be used like that! they’re mala… malacious!”

“malicious, baby,” jaehyun says, throwing the fork into the sink and taking a new one from the drawer. 

“yes! and they hurt people and when you use them, your little angel is disappointed in you,” jaemin pouts and touches his right shoulder, as if apologizing to the angel there for his father’s use of _ bad words_. 

“i’m sorry, baby. you’re the only angel in my life, though. will you be disappointed in me for saying that word?” when jaemin nods, jaehyun just sighs. “guess i’ll have to apologize even more, huh?” 

“i accept apologies in the form of toys, appa! and cake! and tennie-hyung’s pretty clothes! and johnny-hyung’s hugs! and sicheng-hyung’s… i just want sicheng-hyung cause then injunnie could live with me forever!” 

“you don’t want anything from me, baby?”

“stuffed animals.”

jaehyun sighs and follows his son to the living room, where _ thomas the tank engine _ is playing on the tv. “guess i have to buy you another seal, huh?”

“actually, appa, i want a corgi.”

while eating, jaehyun looks up corgi toys and he tries not to curse at taeyong too much for teaching jaemin that cursing is something bad. he wonders if any of his favorite curse words are safe from jaemin’s small hands. 

* * *

he doesn’t notice it at first, too caught up in getting his daily dose of taeyong’s smile, but the guy that’s always at the front desk in the school _ winks _ at him. jaehyun can’t really call it a wink though. the man looks like he’s just blinking in a weird way (which is why it took him so long to realize what he’s doing). he realizes it’s a wink only because after each blink-wink he grins at taeyong and does a weird kissy face. the kissy face is directed at jaehyun. 

that’s how jaehyun finds out about how taeyong’s coworkers _ ship _ them. 

“i’m sorry about yuta,” taeyong says, disrupting jaehyun’s peaceful reading. the cafe where they’re at right now is empty; there is actually a student sleeping at a booth, their laptop open on the table, but jaehyun doesn’t consider them as a major part of the ambiance. 

“you mean the guy who always winks at me when i come in to pick jaem up?” taeyong nods. “oh no, it’s ok. i didn’t even notice him until a few days ago. i thought he just got chalk powder in his eyes every time,” jaehyun laughs. he sees a smile creep on taeyong’s face as well. 

“are you sure? he can be a lot when he wants to… he just likes to tease me but sometimes yuta doesn’t realize that the other party may not be accustomed to his shenanigans.” 

“tease you, how? or rather, why?” jaehyun asks. there must be something involving him too, if yuta only teases the teacher when jaehyun is present. 

“they… uh, _ all _ of my coworkers ship us, i guess? they think that just because jaemin has drawn me in his family portrait and because we spend time together outside of jaeminnie’s classes, we’re together. it’s stupid, it really makes no sense, haha,” he says. “so, _ one hundred years of solitude_! what a great book, am i right?” taeyong, however, quickly changes the subject, laughing nervously. 

jaehyun doesn’t think it’s stupid, not when his feelings for the elder have grown quite a lot over the course of their spawning friendship. he stays quiet and listens to taeyong go on and on about the book, watching as he fiddled with his thumbs. 

* * *

for as long as jaehyun can remember, halloween has always been jaemin’s favorite holiday. he’s always loved dressing up, sewing his costumes with ten’s help (he’s not really allowed to sew, courtesy of jaehyun’s worried nature, but he gets to choose the colors of thread ten will use). 

jaemin chooses his and jaehyun’s theme for the costume months in advance, and this year is no different. jaemin has chosen the addams family as their theme, and he insisted to dress up as wednesday.

jaehyun agreed, since he loves his son more than anything. he was only uneasy at the thought of his baby asking for an axe, or a knife, or a set of bows and arrows, or a cannonball. he doesn’t want his lovely son to go to jail for murder. 

while jaehyun helps braid the wig on jaemin’s head, his son gives him the wonderful news of them _ having _ to participate in the pumpkin carving contest the kindergarten in hosting. it’s _ a tradition_, as jaemin tells him, even if this is his first year at _ moonmoon_. 

“are you sure you… want that, baby? do you really want to stab a pumpkin with one of those flimsy plastic tools?”

“no, appa! you don’t get it! i want to stab it with a _ knife! _ ” jaemin gives him a giant grin, showing his father the new empty spot he has from where his canine fell out a few days ago. had he not just said that he wants to stab something with a very much real, sharp, _ dangerous _knife, jaehyun would’ve thought of it as adorable. 

who is he kidding now? his son will always be adorable, no matter what creepy nonsense he’s saying. 

“alright, baby! then appa will help you make the coolest and scariest pumpkin the whole universe has ever seen!”

jaemin claps excitedly, bouncing around and making jaehyun’s job of braiding the black locks a lot harder. he will be dead if he ruins ten’s wig, so he puts his hand on the boy’s shoulder and tries to settle him down. 

“i’m sorry appa, i just want to beat duckie’s bum in this contest,” jaemin explains. “he said that if i can win it, he’ll ask his appa to help me make some cupcakes for injunnie and nono and markie and lele and sungie too! i won’t give any to duckie though, cause he’s a meanie and he never gives me more icing,” he ends his little rant with a pout, slumping back in jaehyun’s hold. 

jaehyun tries not to act in a childish manner when he speaks, “hey! i can help you make your friends cupcakes!” he ends up whining, the same way jaemin does when he wants a new car toy.

“... appa, are you sure about that? your food is really good, but do you remember the cake we tried to make for uncle tennie’s birthday?”

jaehyun shudders at the memory. burned cake tins, burned cake pieces, raw and still gooey in the middle, overly sweet buttercream to hide the murder site, and that oh so _ furious _look on sicheng’s face when he came home to find his and jaehyun’s kitchen a disaster. 

“let’s leave the past in the past, baby.” jaehyun helps his son stand, smoothing out the creases of his black dress. “do we have to do anything else for your costume?”

“nope! but we have to add your moustache, pa! it’s the most important part of gomez!”

the man draws on a simple line, above his upper lip with an eyeliner pencil, smiling down at jaemin. he breaks into a laugh when he notices the mean glare his own son is giving him. “you’ve ruined it now, appa!”

“well, i’m not the star of this family anyway, baby. now come on, we have a carving contest to win and you have some cupcakes to win!”

“hell yeah!”

jaehyun pretends not to hear the curse his son just said and instead puts his shoes on and leads jaemin out of their apartment.

* * *

turns out that jaehyun doesn’t quite fit the whole gomez character he’s supposed to be. from what he can remember of him, he’s talented… at _ everything_. there is nothing that gomez can’t do when faced with something new. he’d probably be great at carving this damned pumpkin too! his would probably look stylish, maybe morticia’s face would be engraved in it, or maybe even the fucking _ starry night_! but jaehyun, poor jung jaehyun, a man who’s not talented at anything he tries, has given this vegetable a tumor. 

he’s been struggling to give it some eyes for the past twenty minutes, but so far pugsley --as the pumpkin has been baptized by jaemin-- is still blind. he stabs the knife through its head and watches as it remains standing there, its blade shining from the jack-o-lantern behind him. 

“appa, you don’t seem to be doing it right… maybe i should ask mr. lee for help,” jaemin says, already jumping down from his chair. 

“i can do it alone, jaem. i promised to help you make the coolest and scariest pumpkin and i will be damned if i don’t do it!” jaehyun takes the knife out a bit too forcefully, before sticking it back in the disgustingly orange vegetable. at last, one of the eyes is cut out, so triumphantly, he pulls the piece out. 

the shape he’s cut out was supposed to be a circle of some sorts, but when jaehyun takes it out, it looks more like a wobbly oval.

“that doesn’t look right, appa.”

“it’s a picasso inspired pumpkin, baby, that’s what it’s meant to look like!”

jaemin shuts up, but jaehyun can still feel the glances he’s throwing him. it’s not his fault that his artistic talents stop at music and writing! and he’s sure that more than half of the parents here can’t do at least a quarter of what he’s done already. he’s sure that theirs are way shittier than his. he’s sure that--

\--when he looks around him, _ all _ of the pumpkins look straight out of halloween magazines. 

“are you sure you don’t want mr. lee’s help, appa? he showed me a book _ full _ of pumpkins! and he said that if i want to, he can come and help make one of those!”

“we’re _ not _asking anyone for help, jaemin. i can do it. now pass me the small knife, i have to give pugsley’s eye some more details,” he says, holding his hand out for jaemin to pass him the cutting tool.

jaemin stays silent as he observes… whatever his father is trying to accomplish. jaehyun isn’t so sure himself. he _ is _ trying to make the eye rounder, but with the way it’s going, it just looks like jaehyun is carving the next black hole that is to swallow earth. 

once the hole is far too big to be fixed, jaehyun gives up. the knife falls on the wooden desk with a _ thud _ and next comes his forehead. not in the sharp blade, obviously; his head falls on the clean part of the desk. “go call mr. lee, jaem. but _ don’t _ tell him i’m bad at this, ok?”

jaemin nods and off he goes, speed walking as fast as his short legs can carry him to taeyong’s side. he pulls on his sleeve, his very pink sleeve, since taeyong decided to dress up as prince bubblegum from _ adventure time _ (very fitting, jaehyun thinks; maybe they should’ve gone as finn and marshall lee after all), and proceeds to drag him to where his father is drowning in his own misery. 

“appa told me not to tell you this, mr. lee, but he’s really bad at this. he gave pugsley just one eye for his _ whole _ face! i won’t be able to win against duckie unless you help me! appa said he will be of help in this quest, but he let me down! he’s not a good gomez, mr. lee! if he’d be a villager from animal crossing he’d be octavian!” jaemin’s loud voice, and his rather… mean choice of words to describe his father, make jaehyun’s head snap up. 

taeyong is hiding a smile behind his hand, but jaehyun can see the way his eyes crinkle. it’s so goddamn beautiful that he can’t even be mad at his son for insulting him by comparing jaehyun to _ octavian_. he’s by far the most worthless villager! at least jaehyun tried his best in making the scary pumpkin dream of jaemin come to life. 

“well, i can’t have you lose now, can i, baby?” taeyong takes a seat next to jaehyun and gently takes the vegetable in front of him. he pushes his puffy sleeves up, just past his elbows and cracks his knuckles. “let’s try and save pugsley the pumpkin,” he mutters under his breath. 

jaemin cheers and plops down onto his father’s lap. jaehyun wraps his arms around the boy instinctively, not wanting him to move around too much and get cut. it doesn’t come as a surprise that taeyong is probably the most talented person at carving pumpkins that jaehyun knows. his hands seem to be working on their own, cutting out just the right amount of flesh, carving into it with just the tip to score it in such a way that it makes jaehyun think he’s painting something, not stabbing pieces out. 

taeyong holds out one of those plastic tools for jaemin, smiling encouragingly at the boy. “go on, baby. put your own twist to it! your appa did it, i did it, you have to add something that’s _ you _ as well!”

excitedly, jaemin yanks the tool out of taeyong’s hand and goes _ ham _ on the poor vegetable. he stabs at it until there are some shapes that resemble stars in it, until he manages to make an actual indent in it and he pierces the stabbing tool through the flesh. jaemin lets out a victorious shriek. 

the two adults watch him with bemusement in their eyes. 

“can we sign it, appa?” jaemin asks once he deems the masterpiece done. 

“of course, baby!” he turns the pumpkin around until he finds a good, nice and empty spot where the three of them can sign their names. jaemin goes first, since he’s the only one still holding a sharp object in his hands. his signature ends up looking like a wonky jaem, which, in all honesty, jaehyun first reads it as faem. 

then comes taeyong, who somehow writes his name in a perfectly readable, even _ fancy _ way. it’s fucking calligraphy done on the ugliest surface ever. 

jaehyun is as jealous of this as he is impressed. 

before he knows it, taeyong places the knife in his hand again and jesus, jaehyun has to hold the godforsaken tool again. he gives the elder a smile, tense and clearly faked, as he pulls the pumpkin closer. jaemin, sensing the danger approaching, moves from jaehyun’s lap to taeyong’s.

jaehyun does a quick prayer, before he gets to work. at first it’s all good; he carves in the jae part of his name without any actual trouble. sure, it looks like chicken scratch, but it’s something. 

only when he reaches the _ u _ in his name does hell break loose (an exaggeration). jaehyun cuts his finger, just a scratch, really, but taeyong and jaemin beg to differ. jaemin begins to yell about how his appa will now turn into a pumpkin since he has the blood of one in his system now, taeyong begins to panic since there is actual blood dripping down from the cut and jaehyun just wipes his finger with a paper towel near him.

taeyong gasps, grabbing the piece of blood stained paper out of jaehyun’s grasp. “hold on, i’ll bring the first aid kit! don’t you dare move or else you’ll be in trouble, young man!” with that, taeyong runs, heading straight into the building. 

jaemin looks at his father with a worried glance. “appa, will you be ok?”

“of course, baby. your appa is very strong! it doesn’t hurt one bit!” jaehyun reassures his son. it doesn’t hurt, that’s for sure, but when he looks at the cut again, he finds it bleeding even more than it was just seconds ago. 

_ it’s just because taeyongie took the paper from me_, he tries to put his mind at ease. 

taeyong comes back with a colorful kit in his hands. he sits right in front of jaehyun and takes his bleeding finger to his hand. his hands are gentle as they take out the disinfectant from the box. “this may sting a little, jaehyunnie,” is all the warning he gets before the devil’s piss is poured over his cut. it hurts like _ hell_, far more than it should normally, but jaehyun keeps his cool facade on, urging the tears that threaten to leave his eyes back inside his tear ducts. 

after just a few more seconds of pain, taeyong puts a band-aid around his finger. it has little planets and stars on it, the astral objects bright against dark background of the bandage. 

“mr. lee! you have to kiss it better!” jaemin says. “if you don’t then appa won’t heal!”

taeyong blushes, a pretty shade of pink dusting across the apples of his cheeks. he leans in, just enough for his pink hair to fall in his eyes, and presses a kiss on the bandaged finger. jaehyun tries not to combust.

jaemin’s voice breaks the tense atmosphere. “mr. lee, mr. lee! can i get a bandaid too?”

the teacher smiles and takes another one from the kit, this one with a bunch of jupiters on it. “where do you want me to put it?” 

jaemin points at his finger, the same one where jaehyun cut himself. “here, please!” taeyong complies, wrapping the band-aid around jaemin’s perfectly fine finger. “and a kiss please?” this time, taeyong doesn’t blush as he kisses the band-aid on jaemin. 

“there! all nice and patched up!” taeyong says. 

he moves to close the kit, placing the box of bandages back inside, but jaemin is quicker than him. he takes the box, pulling out a single band-aid. he places it on taeyong’s finger, his tongue sticking out in concentration. “we’re all matching now!” jaemin smiles broadly at the two adults, his contagious happiness soon reaching them as well. 

“i guess we are,” taeyong chuckles, “like a family.”

jaehyun stares at the elder, bewitched by what he just said. “yeah, like a family,” he agrees, loud enough just for himself to hear.

* * *

halfway through the month of november, taeyong comes by their apartment, courtesy of jaehyun inviting him. since the days have gotten shorter and a lot more colder, jaehyun doesn’t want the elder to walk the streets alone after their reading dates, since taeyong never agrees on the young father to give him a ride home. that’s the reason he gives taeyong when asked _ why _exactly did he invite him over. 

he frets over the way the inside of the apartment looks for far too long, taking toy after toy, tiny socks, big socks, glasses that were once full of orange juice, pieces of chocolate left to melt in their shiny wrappers and just _ throws _ everything in a dark corner. he tries to tidy _ everything_, dust the furniture clean; he doesn’t rest until the whole house is spotless. 

“appa, why are you cleaning like this? is santa coming early this year?!” jaemin speaks around his chicken strips, sending crunchy bits down on the coffee table in front of him. _ gravity falls _is playing on the tv, since jaemin wants to get in the autumn spirit. 

“no, baby. taeyongie is coming over.” jaemin tilts his head in confusion. “mr. lee, jaem,” jaehyun clarifies. 

jaemin gasps, pushing the plate of chicken away and standing up. “mr. lee! i have to go clean my room! ahh, i can finally show him my plushie collection!” the boy runs past jaehyun’s legs, heading to his room. 

jaehyun shakes his head, a smile spreading on his lips. it seems like both of them are excited to have the elder in their home. 

taeyong arrives just a bit past six, his arms full of bags overflowing with food, candy, cake and _ toys _; seal toys, to be exact. the moment jaemin sees him, he runs into his arms, not caring that the elder is holding bags. he jumps on him, trying to have taeyong catch him.

jaehyun takes the bags from him, leaving taeyong to take care of an overly excited jaemin. he heads to the kitchen, placing the food on the table to unpack later, after he makes sure that taeyong doesn’t actually want to leave. 

a few minutes later, jaemin brings his teacher in the kitchen, dragging him with all his might inside. “and here we eat when uncle johnny, uncle tennie and uncle chengie come over! usually we eat in the living room! i watch cartoons and appa does boring adult work on his laptop. can we eat in the living room today too, mr. lee? i want you to watch bill bring the apocalypse!”

taeyong lets out a choked, confused noise, eyeing jaehyun for some sort of explanation. jaehyun simply shrugs. he doesn’t think taeyong is ready to hear jaemin’s theories of the show yet. maybe next time. 

“jaeminnie, why don’t you go prepare cat and her family to meet yongie-hyung, hm?” jaehyun suggests, kneeling down in front of his son. 

“ok, appa! i know you want to spend time with mr. lee alone!” jaemin says innocently. he gives his father a cheeky grin, before leaving the men alone. 

taeyong looks around nervously, rocking on his heels. his eyes stop on the fridge, full of different drawings and other miscellaneous papers. “you’ve… you’ve framed the drawing jaemin did of his… family?”

jaehyun looks up from where he was measuring the hot chocolate mix he needs to make three cups. “hm?” he finally notices what taeyong is talking about. the drawing of he and taeyong holding hands, while jaemin is between them, grinning widely. jaehyun goes red. “y-yeah, i mean... “ he coughs. “it’s a good drawing, y’know?”

humming, taeyong moves closer to it. his fingers trace the lines of it, his eyes are full of… something jaehyun has only seen johnny muster when he looks at ten. going lower, taeyong stops at the picture of jaehyun, jaemin and soojung, the three of them smiling at the camera while fireworks go off behind them. they took it during the new year’s party back in america. 

he frowns, just slightly, before it disappears and he blushes once more. “your… sister is really pretty,” taeyong says, turning to look at the younger man again. before jaehyun can agree to the statement, everyone who sees soojung can see that she is beautiful, the pink haired man continues, “but i think her brother is prettier.”

jaehyun fights back the blush that rises to his face and does the only thing he can think of in this situation. he makes a joke to ease the tension that’s growing rapidly from just how awkward he is, “you mean yunho is prettier than her?”

taeyong sighs, but he doesn’t look exasperated with how dumb jaehyun is acting. “i meant you, though i’m sure your brother is pretty too. he’s _ your _brother after all.” 

jaehyun has _ no idea _ where this confident taeyong has come from, from what depth of hell it’s crawled his way out, but he knows for sure that if he keeps going with this stupid game of making jaehyun flustered, he’s going to _ explode _ from overheating. he loves it, loves how suddenly taeyong is ready to risk it all for his dumb ass, but while the elder has grown in this confident gay persona, jaehyun remained the panicked bisexual he’s always been. 

it’s not fun for his heart. 

thankfully, his son comes to the rescue, carrying far too many stuffed toys and even dragging one of his giant plushies with ease into the room. “mr. lee, i called you to come meet them, but you didn’t hear,” the boy pouts, “so i brought them here!”

taeyong smiles at him, all warm and loving, and picks up the child, making sure to grab the big toy as well. “jaehyunnie, could you bring the food i’ve brought to the living room? i have a whole family of seals to meet and i think it would be wise to eat while i do so,” taeyong calls over his shoulder, already leaving the kitchen. 

jaehyun has no alternative but to follow the elder in the living room, carrying three bowls full of udon soup, since somehow the elder knew exactly what food jaemin insists on eating every day. he sets the bowls down on the table and joins the two on the couch. he doesn’t really pay attention to how his son is explaining in _ great _ detail the whole family tree of his collection, but taeyong seems to be immersed in it. 

he gasps when jaemin tells him a scandalous affair that happened, he nods along when the boy stops to find the word he wants to use and most importantly, he never laughs at jaemin’s wild imagination. not that jaehyun or his friends have ever done that.

jaehyun may have just fallen in love even more… wait… he’s never _ been _ in love with taeyong to being with, how the _ fuck _ did he just fall deeper? this makes no sense, he’s not in love with jaemin’s kindergarten teacher! 

he tries to focus on the cartoons, on the colorful mess of bubbly pinks and rainbows and rivers of maple syrup and clouds made out of cotton candy (wasn’t the apocalypse happening?), but his eyes are always drawn back to his son and taeyong, who are talking animatedly. 

jaehyun tries very hard not to look over too much. 

an hour later, already half an hour past jaemin’s bedtime, the boy’s eyes begin to close, his speech gets more and more slurred with each word he speaks and soon enough he’s clinging to taeyong’s shirt. “can hyung tell me a story?” 

taeyong hums, gathering the child in his arms. he silently asked jaehyun where jaemin’s room is, to which the younger pointed down the hall. _ i’ll guide you_, he mouths at him. jaehyun has to pick every single toy up, while taeyong simply holds jaemin in his arms, rocking him back and forth as he hums a slow tune. 

they get to jaemin’s room faster now that there is no little distraction awake, and before jaehyun knows it, he’s watching taeyong tell jaemin a story from the doorway, wearing a stupid smile on his face. 

“and then, the shark prince had to fight the evil wizard and save kitty boy!” taeyong says, gesturing wildly as he tries to explain the fight scene in his story in such a way that jaemin gets more captivated. 

jaemin yawns, cuddling his seal closer. “and then what, papa?” he asks, voice almost too quiet for jaehyun to catch the last part. but he does. the air gets knocked out of him, his face flushes bright red and there are tears forming in his eyes. his baby boy thinks of taeyong as another parent. 

he gets out of the room just as taeyong leans in to kiss jaemin’s forehead and tuck him in better. 

jaehyun is so screwed, he doesn’t even know if he should cry or laugh! this is the first time it happens with a person he has actual feelings for! when it was just ten or johnny he could have laughed it off, joked about how the three of them are jaemin’s poly parents, but it’s different with taeyong! 

he wants to _ kiss _ taeyong! he’s never had those thoughts about johnny or ten when sober!

slowly, taeyong exits the room, closing it gently so that the sound doesn’t wake jaemin up. he lets out a sigh of relief and leans on the closed door. “that was a wild ride. i was afraid i’d have to spoil the ending of the final book to him,” he chuckles. only when jaehyun doesn’t laugh at his joke does taeyong look in his direction and notices how… terrified he looks. 

“is everything alright, jaehyunnie?”

“i-- yeah, i’m all good!”

“are you sure?” the elder presses on, unconvinced by his obvious lie. 

without a breath in between, jaehyun stammers out, “i’m sorry my son called you papa i understand if it made you uncomfortable, please don’t leave us though, i can’t imagine my life without you in it anymore.” he’s said everything so fast that it takes taeyong a moment to understand what he has just let out. 

when taeyong does catch the meaning, he looks him dead in the eyes and says, “you’re a fucking idiot, jung jaehyun.” 

said man can’t even process the fact that he’s just heard taeyong swear for the first time since they’ve started talking, because the elder is pulling him closer by the hem of his t-shirt and kissing him deeply and oh… that’s nice. why haven’t they been doing this already?

for a few seconds, jaehyun lets his carnal desires take over, kissing taeyong with much more force. he pushes the elder against the wall, his hands resting on taeyong’s face. a moan escapes the pink haired man and the sound goes straight to jaehyun’s growing hardness. 

something inside of him switches; he pulls back. “wait, does that mean you like me?” jaehyun asks, suddenly unsure of his actions. 

“i like you so much you can’t even comprehend it, hyunnie,” taeyong says, staring deep into jaehyun’s eyes. the younger can’t feel anything dishonest in him, but he still worries. taeyong senses the words that threaten to spill from jaehyun’s mouth, so he rushes to say. “and yes, i’ve liked you since you ran into the fence around the school. so it’s been a while i guess.”

jaehyun goes pink. “did that really make you like me?”

taeyong hums, wrapping his arms around the younger’s neck to pull him closer. “yeah. it was endearing to see you stumble and almost fall… adorable, really.” he smiles, small yet full of love. his cheeks are just as pink, meaning that the confident gay in him may be slipping away. jaehyun hopes he’s not, because if taeyong goes back to being a panicked gay then they won’t get anywhere tonight. 

“can you shut _ up, _ that was embarrassing,” jaehyun whines, refusing to look at taeyong. 

“how about _ you _ shut _ me _ up, hm, handsome?”

jaehyun’s brain short circuits, and everything is _ blank _ in his head. he moves without thinking when he leans in and presses their lips together again, this kiss totally different from the one he’s just had with taeyong; much shyer, almost unsure of what to do next. 

jaehyun has never felt this way when kissing a man before, he’s never felt this way when kissing a woman either. it’s all because taeyong makes something inside him spark, makes him want to try new things, to learn to love again in more ways than before. 

* * *

jaehyun wakes up in an empty bed. his hand looks around for the body that should be next to him, but it only finds still warm sheets tangled around him. he stands up, the white sheets pooling around his waist as he groggily searches the room for taeyong. images flash before his eyes; pink hair sprawled across his pillow, teeth scraping at flawless, milky skin, fingernails scratching it, sweat glistening under dimmed lights, a mouth, pretty and pink, gasping for air, white staining cheeks and stomaches. 

the smell of pancakes brings him back to the present. he looks down at his chest, littered with little bite marks and scratches and decides that a t-shirt will be needed. 

guided by the sweet smell, he enters the kitchen a few minutes later, only to find taeyong and jaemin surrounded by plate after plate _ after plate_, each fuller than the other with pancakes drowned in syrup.

“why are there… dozens of pancakes?” he asks, stunned at the scene in front of him. 

jaemin jumps down from the chair, running into his father’s legs. jaehyun quickly picks him up. “me and hyung made them for you! you have to eat _ every single one_, appa! they’re made with love!”

“and a ton of sugar,” taeyong says. he put on a hoodie of jaehyun’s, and he had to roll the sleeves two-three times in order to not have his fingers covered by the green material. “jaem accidentally dropped in three cups of sugar instead of three tablespoons.”

“how--”

“don’t question it, hyunnie,” the elder laughs, shaking his head. “they’re pretty tasty anyway, if i do say so myself. not as tasty as what i had to eat last night but they’re ok.” he winks at jaehyun, making the brunette choke on his orange juice. 

“hyung is right, appa! the udon soup was great! not even his pancakes can compare!” jaemin exclaims.

taeyong smirks at the younger one more time before setting one last plate on the table. “yes baby, the udon was amazing. now eat up! both of you are growing boys!”

and jaehyun and jaemin both can’t help but listen. 

* * *

brunch with johnny, ten and sicheng is always something unmatched when it comes to the amount of patience jaehyun has. sure, sometimes, when they’re targeting johnny _ or _ ten _ or _ sicheng, he joins in on the fun! but when the three of them team up to _ bully _ him (with love, ten always argues) it’s not all fun and games. 

and when he arrives at the restaurant with taeyong holding one of his hands and jaemin the other, jaehyun knows that this get together is ought to be a long one. 

while johnny is busy talking with taeyong about the school system in korea (jaehyun is happy johnny finally found himself someone who understands the pain of being a teacher), ten leans in to whisper in jaehyun’s ear, “is this jaem’s teacher?” 

jaehyun nods, reaching for the toast that’s in front of sicheng. “yes, he is,” he whispers back.

“he’s cute.”

“i know, tennie.”

“do you really like him?”

“more than i’ve ever liked anyone, yes.” jaehyun slathers the toast in butter, putting some of the strawberry jam on it and passing the slice to jaemin. when he looks at ten, the elder is smiling at him, the gentle one he has stored away for special occasions. 

“i’m glad you’re finding love again, jae. you deserve it.”

jaehyun hides his face behind the coffee mug, not wanting the thai to see his blush or his teary eyes. “fuck off,” he mumbles.

jaemin sees the opportunity and grabs it, “appa, that’s a bad word!”

taeyong laughs and wipes some of the jam from his mouth. “very good baby, your appa needs to learn that it’s not ok to swear around you!”

“thank you, papa,” jaemin says, leaning on taeyong. the boy doesn’t seem to realize what he’s just said, but sure enough the five men around the table do. 

johnny quirks an eyebrow, sicheng hides a smirk behind his hand, ten gasps rather loudly, taeyong blushes and jaehyun just pretends not to have heard it. 

“can anyone pass me the salt please?”

“you fucker!” ten says through gritted teeth. 

once again, he was right about how much the meeting will last.

* * *

when jaehyun (and jaemin) take taeyong home that day, jaemin insisted on them stepping inside so that taeyong can pay his debt of having been introduced to the child’s toys. taeyong, more than excited, agreed. 

and so, they fell into somewhat of a routine. every other night they would spend it at each other’s apartment, with the guest cooking dinner (though, most of the time, when jaehyun cooked, they just ended up getting take-out). jaemin got more and more attached to taeyong, calling him papa almost every time when he refers to him. 

it didn’t faze anyone anymore. taeyong’s friends and fellow teachers didn’t even bother to call jaehyun to school if something happened to his son. they knew that his other father was there to take care of him now. 

it scared jaehyun, how close the two have gotten over the course of just a few months. though he wouldn’t change it for anything, he couldn’t help but wonder sometimes, what his life would be like if jaemin hadn’t called taeyong papa that night. would they have actually gotten together without the help of his little rascal? or would have taeyong gotten tired of beating around the bush?

one thing was for sure: he was ready to spend the rest of his life alongside taeyong, and nothing could change that. and that he owed his son the biggest and most cuddly plushie he could find for pushing the two (dumb) adults together. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> how many times can jaehyun postpone a proposal before jesus comes back on earth to tell him to get a grip? many times apparently!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i've been meaning to write a second chapter for this for a while now and i thought, hey, why not now when i'm stuck inside with nothing better to do? so, yeah, this thing was born in between studying for exams. enjoy!

the traffic is absolutely infernal, with cars honking and people yelling insults at each other in hopes of getting the car in front of them to hurry. it’s a cacophony of sounds, one worse than the other, and right now jaehyun is glad he decided to take the subway this morning instead of going to work with his car. 

despite jaemin being eight now and already a second grader (jaehyun still cries whenever he realizes his little baby is growing up faster than he can accept), they’re still reluctant about letting him go to and from school alone. it’s not that jaehyun doesn’t trust his son to come home on his own, he’s just scared something might happen to his baby. 

everyday after work, he walks to jaemin’s school and today is no different. a relaxed smile playing on his lips and no worries weighing on his shoulders, jaehyun strolls through the streets, ignoring the angry people who want to get home faster. he too is in a rush, but only because he wants to see jaemin. 

his son is happy at his new school, he loves his teacher, loves his classmates, and he loves how everyday he can trick jaehyun into buying him ice cream before they get home. it’s a nice routine, one that jaehyun never would have expected, but here they are. 

except that today, he is not greeted by his son, running into his arms and almost falling and bruising his knees on the concrete. instead, he’s met with the sight of jaemin holding tightly onto the leg of none other than the love of his life. lee taeyong, in all his glory, with his soft silver hair, warm demeanour and even warmer eyes. just like when they first met, the sun is casting hues of gold and orange on his hair and skin, engulfing him in it. he looks like an angel; he always looks like an angel, but when the sun shines just right, jaehyun remembers how other wordly his boyfriend is. 

taeyong is busy talking with jaemin’s teacher, which doesn’t surprise jaehyun anymore. the elder loves to check on all of the boy’s teachers at least once a month, the only thing that jaehyun isn’t sure of is if it’s as jaemin’s other dad or as his old kindergarten teacher. he likes to think it’s the former, but he did catch taeyong talk with wendy about changing the materials for her class at least three times in the two years jaemin has been her student. 

it’s as endearing as it is dumb, but jaehyun doesn’t have the heart to tell taeyong that he shouldn’t interfere with other teachers’ style of teaching the kids. taeyong would make him sleep on the couch if he dared to say that outloud. 

jaemin spots him first, eyes widening in excitement and a scream already threatening to break the quiet atmosphere around the school’s playground, but jaehyun is quick to motion his son to not make a sound. he approaches the three carefully, wrapping his arms around his unsuspecting boyfriend. taeyong has no reaction other than melting in his jaehyun’s hold and placing his hands on top of the younger’s arms.

not the reaction he wanted, but who is jaehyun to say no to having a beautiful man in his arms? 

“thank you for your insight, taeyong-ssi, i will make sure to… keep it in mind when i see her again,” wendy says, a dusting of pink on her cheeks. jaehyun frowns at the woman but says nothing. 

“just make sure it’s all done at the right time, wendy-ssi. and try not to be too awkward about it. kids always do things like that and there is nothing wrong with letting the parents know, right jaehyunnie?” taeyong turns around slightly to catch jaehyun’s confused look just in time. he shakes his head fondly and presses a quick kiss on the younger’s cheek. “who knows, maybe you’ll end up with a girlfriend out of this all.”

wendy chuckles nervously, hiding her face behind her hands. she doesn’t get a chance to say anything else as jaemin grabs their attention with a loud whine. 

“that’s our cue, darling,” jaehyun mumbles, detaching himself from taeyong and picking up his son. “ice cream?” jaemin nods, hiding his face in his father’s neck. “alright, let’s get you some, baby. yongie?” he calls for his boyfriend, whose eyes are glued to the two, a smile spread on his face. 

“can i have some ice cream too, hyunnie?”

“only if you pay for it, grandpa.” the offended gasp taeyong lets out may just be the highlight of his whole day. “goodbye, wendy-ssi! i’ll see you tomorrow when i bring the little rascal to school!” he waves goodbye at the woman with one hand, before urging jaemin out of his hiding spot. “say bye, jaem,” he says, gently. 

despite how tired the boy is, he manages a smile and a small wave, accompanied by an even smaller _ bye bye. _ everyone coos, ready to fight god for the little tired boy. 

wendy pets his head lightly, telling jaemin goodbye in the same type of voice. “jaehyun-ssi, taeyong-ssi, have a good day. and thank you,” she aims the last part at taeyong, who smiles and gives her a hug.

“you’ve got this! and if she ends up being mean about it, just ignore it.” he pulls back, still holding wendy’s hands. “if anything happens, call me. i have experience in this field.”

few more goodbyes later, taeyong is holding jaemin’s backpack in one hand and jaehyun’s hand in the other, swinging them back and forth. jaemin managed to fall asleep in his father’s arms as soon as they started heading home, but he will be up and running by the time they enter the ice cream place.

“what were you talking about with wendy?” jaehyun asks, voice hushed as to not wake up his baby. 

taeyong looks at him, “oh, nothing. just that one of her students made a story about her mom and wendy getting married and she doesn’t know how to approach the mother about this. and since i happen to have had the same thing occur to me too, i thought i could help!” the elder stops to give jaehyun a kiss, before continuing their walk. “hopefully the mother doesn’t act like an ass about it, but wendy said she’s nice and very single, so maybe the kid is onto something.”

jaehyun laughs and shakes his head, accidentally making jaemin wake up. 

“ice cream?”

“shh, not yet, angel. go back to your nap.” the boy hums, eyes already closed and drifting back to sleep. “so you just want more gays to be happy, huh?”

“well, duh,” taeyong shrugs, “gays being happy is the reason i’m alive, jae! look at you! whenever i see you happy, i get happy too!”

“that sure is a lot of happy,” jaehyun hums, “but it’s all your fault i’m like that, you know?”

taeyong blushes, at a loss for words. he looks away from jaehyun’s intense gaze. “t-that’s gay,” he mumbles, going even redder. somehow, whenever jaehyun does or says something romantic out of the blue, taeyong’s brain goes into overdrive mode even after three years of dating. it’s cute.

“i guess we are pretty gay, huh,” jaehyun agrees, throwing his arm around taeyong’s shoulders and pulling him close enough he can feel the heat on his cheeks. he presses a kiss on the top of taeyong’s head, “but we can be homiesexual if you want, love. just two bros taking care of their child together.”

“i hate you,” the silver haired man whines.

“i love you too, darling.”

and god, if his poor heart doesn’t do a million backflips and other dangerous parkour moves when taeyong pouts at him. he’s almost positive he can hear it go _ parkour _and throw itself off top of the rib cage and into his stomach, landing face first into the pit. it hurts just a bit, but then again, it’s just a metaphor and his body probably hurts because all he had today was coffee. 

“you have to buy me ice cream, understood? or else…” taeyong frowns at his boyfriend, letting the threat sizzle. and he lets it sizzle even more, until he almost walks into a pole since he’s not looking ahead. jaehyun muffles a laugh and quirks an eyebrow. “i won’t kiss you _ ever _again.”

jaehyun thinks it through. on the one hand, no kisses from taeyong which does sound like the worst thing, but on the other, he could tease his boyfriend some more. he chooses not to, just because he’s nice like that. 

he blows taeyong a kiss, but doesn’t say anything about it. they walk in silence, only taeyong’s little indignant huffs being heard every now and again. it _ almost _makes jaehyun feel like an ass, but he knows that once they get to the ice cream shop, taeyong won’t hold back even if he were to apologize. the man’s got a sweet tooth bigger than jaemin and the boy could inhale a candy shop in seconds. well, taeyong could do it in nanoseconds. 

and true to everything taeyong stands for, as soon as jaehyun pulls the door open for him, he _ bolts _to the display of colorful sweet treats. the younger rolls his eyes at taeyong’s excitement, but he’d be lying if it isn’t just as cute as the first three hundred times he’s done it. 

“jaem? hey, baby, we’re here,” he shakes his son awake gently, mindful of how jaemin’s head lulls to the side. jaehyun knows he’s just pretending now, so he takes out his best weapon to get his son to stop playing. “well, i guess that if jaem isn’t awake to tell me what ice cream he wants i’ll just get him a scoop of pistachio…” jaemin _ loathes _pistachio ice cream, something he’s got from taeyong. 

the boy’s eyes open in an instant, squirming around in his father’s arms until jaehyun finally puts him down. he doesn’t even pay attention to jaehyun! he simply runs to where taeyong is inspecting all the new flavours and pulls on his sleeve to let him know he’s ready to plot the destruction of jaehyun’s wallet. 

taeyong and jaemin begin reciting the order to an overwhelmed sehun, who despite having heard worse from the two, is still taken aback everytime they come here. something that happens daily. 

as taeyong spoon feeds him some of his ice cream, jaehyun thinks again of how beautiful it would be to call taeyong his husband. he’s been trying to propose for so long, but everytime he did, something interrupted him. be it a phone from work, a crying jaemin, a ready to make him suffer johnny, it’s like the universe was trying to tell him he shouldn’t propose. 

but the universe can suck his dick. he will propose to taeyong even if it’s the last thing he does with his life. except that he knows he won’t die by the end of the journey because he’s pretty fucking sure his life is a rushed slow burn, single parent and kindergarten teacher fic. it wouldn’t make sense for him to die! 

at least, he bases his life on that belief. jaehyun really, really hopes his creator won’t step into a depressive episode and kill him. 

taeyong smears some bubblegum ice cream on his cheek, pulling him out of his thoughts. “you ok, dear?”

jaehyun nods and smile, leaning in to kiss his boyfriend after he wipes his face clean. “just thinking.”

“about?”

“how much i love you,” he says, kissing taeyong again, just because he tastes like five thousand different candies. jaemin gags, still eager as ever to voice his disgust over his parents being in love and very adorable with each other. 

“you dare gag at us, jaem? then take this!” taeyong aims his kisses at jaemin just to annoy him. 

it’s loud and he can hear some of the older people around complain, but _ this _is jaehyun’s family. he needs to make it official quickly, or else he might go insane with not being able to call taeyong his husband. 

* * *

ten had been the one who figured jaehyun’s been thinking of proposing when he found him staring at rings during their yearly quest of finding christmas presents three months in advance. he caught him staring for the sixth time. 

jaehyun had entered probably every jewelry store he stumbled upon, but none had _ the _perfect ring. some came close, but if he was being honest, jaehyun wasn’t even sure what the ring was supposed to look like. he just knew that the big diamonds or smaller diamonds encrusted in the silver, gold, platinum bands just wouldn’t cut it. 

he just needed to _ see _ it for him to know it’s perfect. simple as that. 

“you know taeyong would marry you even if you gave him one of those candy rings, right? like i legit think you’d have better chances of him saying yes if you proposed with sweets,” ten said, coming up behind him and startling jaehyun. he almost dropped the diamond ring he was looking at.

jaehyun sighed, “you don’t get it tennie. it has to be perfect! he’s the best thing that has ever happened to me after getting jaemin…” he continued on, a dreamy look on his face. “i want to make the rest of his life just as happy as he’s made mine.” 

ten stayed silent, a comforting warmth next to jaehyun. he put an arm around the younger’s shoulders, then proceeded to gag. “god, you’re so cheesy. i can see why everyone’s had a crush on you at least once…” the shorter man leaned over his shoulder, and pointed to a ring that was almost pale in comparison with the others. “how about that one? it’s quite small and the stone isn’t the main attraction of it. maybe you can engrave something on the inside, how does that sound?” 

jaehyun inspected the jewelry from afar; one’s eyes could pass by it without even noticing its beauty, but ten did pay attention to the smallest things. and so did taeyong. it was delicate, a simple silver band with a small teardrop shaped stone. the stone did draw attention with its deep red shade, but it was still so dainty, so…

it was perfect. it was _ the _ring. 

and jaehyun had never purchased something as fast as then, though, he did have a small breakdown when he realized he didn’t know taeyong’s size. 

ten, the savior, the angel in disguise, came through in the end, calling taeyong and asking for his size because _ if jaehyun doesn’t propose then i will and also, i wanna get us matching rings! _

it was a convincing act, and soon after he hung up, jaehyun still holding his breath, they walked out of the store, the small box securely in jaehyun’s pocket. 

that was more than a year ago, and by some devil-made curse, the ring was still in jaehyun’s bag, ready to be given to taeyong. 

* * *

taeyong always likes his coffee hot, something jaehyun still can’t wrap his head around. despite how much the elder loves sugar, he still prefers his coffee hot brewed, even if it’s more bitter than the cold brew jaehyun drinks every day. 

so, jaehyun has learned to make the most amazing, show stopping espresso shot known to humankind. he’s even asked johnny to teach him how to use a french press _ and _how to make drip coffee, all for taeyong to enjoy each morning. he makes sure to pay back in kisses and food, which jaehyun can’t say no to. 

today is no different, except that it’s a saturday and neither of them have to go to work. 

jaehyun woke up early, kissed taeyong’s head and got out of bed, heading straight to the kitchen to get the coffee started. he even used some of the fancy coffee beans taeyong got from johnny, and when he finished preparing everything, jaehyun took his own coffee out of the fridge. 

now, as he waits for taeyong to wake up and make his way to the kitchen, jaehyun debates if he should make them breakfast too. he’s learned how to cook better since taeyong moved in, but he still doesn’t trust himself with making sweets, and his son and husb-- boyfriend both like having a sweet breakfast rather than a salty one. 

jaehyun blames jaemin’s love for american style breakfast on johnny, though he’d be lying if he said he hated syrup drenched pancakes. 

twenty minutes later, five half burnt pancakes on his plate and more than enough batter to try and _ not _murder, taeyong’s little steps come behind him; his arms wrap around jaehyun’s middle, as his head rests on the younger’s back. 

“i made you coffee but i think it’s cold now. want me to reheat it?” jaehyun asks, his hand moving back to rub at taeyong’s butt. it’s not the most comfortable position, but jaehyun _ really _ wants to get at least some pancakes nice and golden brown and _ edible _for his family. 

“i can do it, don’t worry,” the elder says, muffling a yawn in jaehyun’s shirt. he presses a kiss in the same spot, patting jaehyun’s butt as well when he detaches himself to take his mug and throw it in the microwave. jaehyun’s face goes slightly pink, and he thanks heavens for his boyfriend’s sleep glazed eyes, otherwise he wouldn’t let him live it down. 

the sound of the microwave door being slapped closed and the pitter-patter of taeyong’s feet as he shuffles from side to side, waiting for the beverage to thoroughly heat up, fill in the kitchen. it’s a comforting background noise that jaehyun cherishes. 

“i’m gonna steal a pancake, ‘kay? ‘kay.” taeyong mumbles, already reaching for the stack the younger had just taken out of the pan. jaehyun barely has time to register what taeyong said before his boyfriend is whining in pain, the pancake falling on the floor with a pathetic _ plop_. 

the stove is off in seconds, the remaining pancakes forgotten on the pan. they will probably end up being burnt as well, but jaehyun has more important things to deal with right now, namely taeyong’s possibly harmed hands. 

taeyong, to his surprise, is holding his tongue out, eyes watery. “huwts,” he whimpers, what jaehyun assumes to be a pout forming on his lips. “huwts,” he says again when the younger makes no move to take the pain away. 

there are many thoughts spinning around jaehyun’s head as he stares at the elder’s swollen tongue; _ what if the burn is so bad it leaves him without taste buds? _ or _ what if it _ is _ a third degree burn and only ice on it won’t do? _ and also _ oh god, taeyong will lose one of his senses because of my cooking, how will i be a good husband if i can’t even make him breakfast? _ which spirals into _ will he even _ want _ me as his husband now?! _ and lord, jaehyun might just explode from overthinking. 

the frown on taeyong’s face deepns. jaehyun has only one way of making taeyong feel better and despite the worry and reasoning in his head that maybe he shouldn’t, he still does. 

jaehyun presses the smallest kiss on the elder’s tongue, watching with relief as taeyong’s face lights up, the previous pain long gone. he is adorable, jaehyun can’t believe he gets to call taeyong _ his. _

_ not yet, _ his stupid brain provides. 

right, he still needs to propose. jesus, this isn’t the _ right _moment; he can’t go and propose while the smell of coal floats in the air--

“_ the pancakes! _” 

taeyong’s laughter is sweeter than any sweet breakfast drowned in mapel. at least jaemin didn’t witness this failure as well. his son already calls him a barely average cook, he doesn’t need another reason for worse. 

(jaemin finds out about it when he comes into the kitchen an hour later, freshly out of bed, asking his father why does the whole house smell like smoke. jaehyun would’ve died had taeyong not slapped him hard on the back when he choked on the cold brew.)

* * *

jaemin never really grew out of his plush toys love, something jaehyun expected from his son. he’s had at least one best friend in the form of a stuffed toy ever since he was a baby, so surely that wouldn’t go away. 

so one could only imagine jaehyun’s confusion when he went to give jaemin a good night kiss and saw haru the bunny on the child’s desk instead of tucked safely in his arms. jaemin is facing away from haru, which only worries jaehyun more. 

“baby, why isn’t haru in your bed?” he asks carefully, squatting down next to his son’s bed. he can vaguely see jaemin shrug, before burying himself deeper in his blanket. “angel, did something happen that made you _ not _want to cuddle haru?”

“everything’s fine, appa,” jaemin mumbles, “just didn’t feel like having plushies in my bed anymore. i’m older now, i shouldn’t sleep with them anymore… ‘m not a baby…” 

in that moment, something breaks in jaehyun. someone dared to comment on jaemin’s love for toys and make him feel insecure about it. whoever did that should face the wrath of jaehyun, taeyong _and_ all of jaemin’s uncles and aunts, but most of all soojung, who isn’t afraid of making a child cry. 

before he fights a kid though, he needs to talk with jaemin. 

“jaem, baby, whoever said that are probably even more insecure about something regarding them and want to take it out on you.” jaehyun slips next to his son in bed, cuddling him. “i’m not saying what they did or said is justified because of their own insecurities. what i want you to know, jaemin, is that you shouldn’t change yourself just because some ass-- meanie said you’re too old to like stuffed toys! come on, baby, you always fight for what’s right, you always stand up for renjunnie or jeno or duckie, why not stand up for yourself?” 

and just how jaehyun’s heart broke at jaemin’s mean words directed at himself, the boy’s walls come crashing down at his father’s implications. he clutches onto jaehyun’s body, hiding his face in his chest as jaemin shakes with each sob that leaves his small body. 

jaehyun just holds him tight, petting his hair gently and whispering encouragements to him. his son shouldn’t cry about this, about not caring enough about himself at the age of _ eight_. he shouldn’t cry about anything! 

once jaemin’s crying has been reduced to small sniffles, jaehyun pulls his son back to wipe his tears and snot with his own shirt. “i know you love your friends the most, jaem, but you should come first,” he tells the boy, voice soft as to not make him cry again. 

jaemin sniffles once more. “they took care of the meanie, but i just… appa, what if he was right? i’m not a baby anymore, why do i still sleep with toys?”

“angel, there’s nothing to be ashamed of. papa still sleeps with his toys when appa is away, does that make him a baby?” jaemin shakes his head. “no, because papa knows he needs to cuddle something while he sleeps to keep him grounded.”

“why doesn’t papa cuddle me then?” jaemin asks, voice small.

jaehyun thinks of all the bruises taeyong gives him during the night, of all the knees in his stomach and slaps over his face he has to go through, of the way he ends up cold and blanket-less in the morning. “papa wants you to rest well, angel, that’s why.”

the boy nods, though he’s still frowning. “does papa punch you in his sleep, appa?”

“something like that,” jaehyun sighs. jaemin pats his chest in understandment, but keeps quiet. “now, do you wanna sleep or should appa give you more speeches about how important it is to be yourself?”

jaemin’s small hand fists the man’s shirt. “can you stay until i fall asleep appa?”

wrapping his arms around jaemin and squeezing him to his chest, jaehyun silently agrees. he gives his son a kiss on the forehead. “good night, angel, sleep well.”

the tired boy doesn’t even get to respond, already falling asleep due to the exhaustion of crying in his father’s arms. jaehyun isn’t sure when he falls asleep as well, but when he wakes up in the middle of the night, it’s thanks to taeyong slamming his elbow in jaehyun’s side. 

both taeyong and jaemin sleep soundlessly cuddled on either side of him, and though jaehyun may not feel around ninety percent of his body anymore, he doesn’t dare disturb them. 

at least jaemin is strangling haru with the choke hold he has on the bunny. 

for now, everything is ok.

* * *

when they first started dating, taeyong would always say that jaehyun wasn’t _ dad enough _because he didn’t make puns whenever an opportunity arose. so after the fifth time taeyong had told him he missed a great pun, jaehyun took it upon himself to make at least three bad jokes a day. 

and today was it just so happened that taeyong set the scene _ just right _by making pasta for dinner! he found a pasta pun on pinterest this morning! fate!

“hey, babe?” jaehyun says, making taeyong stop stirring the pot to look over at his boyfriend with a smile plastered on his face. “what do you call a fake noodle?”

the smile disappears faster than jaemin saying how much he loves his friends and fathers. “if you dare finish that, i swear to god and all that’s holy i will fight you, jung.” and oh, now there’s a rush of adrenaline in his system; he loves it when his husb-- taeyong throws empty threats at him! absolutely adorable, like a small kitten-puppy-cute-fluffy-animal combination being _ angy _at him. 

he finishes it anyway, “an impasta!” 

the next thing he knows taeyong is chasing him around the house, using a dish towel as his weapon of choice to end jung jaehyun’s reign as _ the bestest and most dad-est dad to ever exist, especially in the jung-lee residence_. it’s a self proclaimed title and he still has to reach the perfect sounding version of it, but for the time being it’s the best he can do. 

when the elder does catch up to him, they’re both breathless and smiling ear-to-ear. taeyong smacks him with the towel over his chest, then gives him a quick kiss, and then rushes to the kitchen to finish their dinner. 

he’s so fucking gone for lee taeyong, it’s unreal. 

* * *

“appa! uncle johnny, uncle ten, uncle sicheng and uncle kun--” jaemin stops yelling once he feels his father behind him. he looks up, and then continues, just as loudly, “are here!”

jaehyun ruffles jaemin’s hair. “i can see that, angel. what do you say, should we let them in?” he eyes his friends and their armsful of board games and food. ten glares at him. “ok, ok, i’ll let you in! just don’t murder me in my sleep please, jeez…” 

he moves aside to let them in, leaving jaemin to run amok after johnny when he sees the yellow fluff peeking out of his bag. he’s already screaming and he didn’t even see the toy, let alone ask if it’s really for him. (not like he wouldn’t make johnny give it to him anyway, despite who its owner is.)

“so,” kun starts, leaning on sicheng for support, “you ready to get your bum beaten at charades?”

ten rolls his eyes, launching into the bickering. “we’re not playing charades, you old man! who even likes playing that game? it’s boring and just stupid! you see, ludo on the other hand--”

“uncle ten, but i like charades,” jaemin interrupts the man. he’s giving ten _ the _puppy look johnny thought him, and just like that, johnny joins him too. 

“yeah, tennie! charades is fun!” the taller man pouts at his boyfriend and lord, he’s also wearing the look. 

jaehyun and sicheng share a look. _ a bottle of soju he’s gonna give in? _ sicheng’s eyes seem to ask. 

_ five seconds. _ jaehyun agrees. 

_ nah, it’s ten, he has to last at least ten seconds-- _

“fine, we’re playing charades!” ten sighs, taking the game out of the pile and putting it on the coffee table. 

“fucker,” sicheng mutters under his breath, shooting daggers at jaehyun. the man just shrugs, an easy smile on his lips. like taking a lollipop from a kid, except that the kid is a grown man and the lollipop tastes like and _ is _alcohol. 

taeyong comes out of the kitchen, a few bags of snacks in his arms. “charades again?” jaehyun is quick to help his boyfriend, taking the bags from him and throwing one each at their friends. they don’t get bowls unless they wash them themselves. 

“of course, yongie, what else can you expect?”

“sad,” taeyong sighs, “i wanted to live up to the world’s capitalistic expectations and play monopoly.”

before he can even fix _ any _ of them with a glare meant to change their minds, all four men groan out a _ no, _ which is just unfair! taeyong wants monopoly, they should play monopoly! they’re in his house after all! 

either way, majority wins, as always, and now jaehyun has to guess what sicheng is trying to mime. he knows it’s _ something_, just not quite what yet. 

“movie?” kun asks. sicheng shakes his head. “book?” another no. “scene from a tv show?” yes. “adult show or kids show?” he gets an exasperated look from sicheng and a glare from taeyong, but kun doesn’t give up just yet. “merlin! when arthur dies and they rip out our hearts by taking away from us the greatest couple known to humankind!” a beat of silence, then… _ no. _

“uncle chengie!” jaemin raises his arm, asking for his turn. “is it one of doofenshmirtz's sad backstories? is it the one with balloony?” 

“yes!” 

“how the--” kun stares at jaemin in pure amazement. “are you sure he’s jae’s son? he’s not as dense.”

“he takes after taeyong more now,” ten snorts, stuffing his face with a handful of chips. 

both taeyong and jaehyun blush, looking away from each other and letting go of their joined hands. they’re acting like teenagers again and they didn’t even meet as teens. ironic. 

in front of him, johnny winks at jaehyun, eyes lowering to where taeyong’s hands are sprawled on the table. he frowns at the lack of rings on it, to which jaehyun shrugs.

he almost proposed last week, but taeyong’s mother called to tell him ruby missed him and that consequently, his parents miss him as well. and how could jaehyun propose when taeyong’s mother is eagerly inviting them over to have dinner? 

at least that time he couldn’t be mad at the person who interrupted his plans. 

he’ll get to it soon enough, jaehyun can feel it in his bones.

right now though, he has bigger problems. like trying to understand why jaemin mimes something that looks like a goose running around with a knife in its beak. 

* * *

sicheng is the first one to get sick of jaehyun’s moping whenever taeyong isn’t around, so he takes everything into his own hands. he doesn’t propose to taeyong in jaehyun’s place, but he’s not far from it either. at least, that’s what jaehyun thinks when sicheng pushes his open laptop towards him when they meet up at his and kun’s place. 

“so i’ve got it all planned out for you. you have a few options of how to do it, but my personal favorite is while you’re walking in the park at night and flower petals are falling all around and the moon is shining bright above you. just saying you should go with that one, jae.” sicheng pours him a glass of water, sliding it across the table. “it’s perfect!”

jaehyun sighs. “it is, but not for us, cheng. it’s perfect for you and kun. it’s how _ you _want him to propose. look, i really appreciate the worry and shit, but i can’t let others plan this for me, especially when they don’t know how to make it perfect, no offence.”

“none taken,” sicheng says, giving him a reassuring look. “then let us help! come on, jae, it’s been so long! don’t you want to just get married? call yong your husband?”

jaehyun doesn’t dare tell him he already calls taeyong that in his head. “i do, but i don’t know, cheng, i feel like i should wait until the right time comes. sure, i always think the time is right, but i just… do we really need a wedding and a piece of paper to say we’re married when we already act like we are? i’d love a wedding where i can proclaim my undying love for lee taeyong, but i already do that without the celebration. i’ll ask him to marry me one day; if the day is tomorrow that’s great, if the day is five years from now on, that’s ok too! as long as i have taeyongie and jaeminnie i’m happy, sicheng.”

sicheng nods, a look of guilt on his face. “i’m sorry i pushed you.”

jaehyun laughs, closing the laptop and giving it back to his best friend. “don’t worry about it. besides, now i know what to tell kun when he comes running to us that he doesn’t know how to propose!” he skillfully dodges the grape sicheng throws at him. “you wanted help with building that wardrobe, right?”

“yes, please.”

jaehyun is proud he got to avoid another one of his friends taking the lead. god knows he can only do so much before they actually propose to taeyong for him. 

though, he didn’t lie about not minding the wait. he loves taeyong too much, and while a part of him does want to just ask him over lunch if he’ll marry jaehyun, the more romantic part knows that he should just be patient. 

and patient he will be.

* * *

jaehyun stops thrusting to look at taeyong, sprawled out underneath him, eyes closed and a layer of sweat covering his skin. he’s absolutely breathtaking. 

“hey, yongie, what do you call a person with no body and no nose?” taeyong ignores him. “nobody knows.”

sleeping on the couch has never been more worthy. 

* * *

jaehyun prides himself in being as dense as a pound cake. he won’t deny it, not when taeyong says it’s lowkey cute how he doesn’t catch on the details despite them being right in front of him. sure, he observes, and isn’t _ that _ oblivious when it comes to his friends, but when it’s about himself, he’s like a rock. again, taeyong thinks it’s adorable, so he doesn’t mind. 

jaemin, on the other hand, is like a sponge cake, angel’s food, if jaehyun were to continue with the desert metaphors. he observes _ and _ realizes what’s happening around him, all whilst pretending to be parallel with the subject at hand. 

but even so, when jaemin approaches his father with a rather… bold question, he’s still taken aback. 

“appa, when will you marry papa?” the question is asked so… innocently, like it’s not making jaehyun lose his goddamn mind because his son… asked him… that. “i wanna be your flower boy!” jaemin doesn’t even look away from the tv where his villager is running around on jaehyun’s island. technically, it’s jaehyun’s villager, but the man made it look like the boy.

jaehyun lets out a nervous chuckle, pointing to where jaemin is planting some new flowers. “those are very pretty, jaemin-ah, why not fill the whole island with them?”

“appa, i’m serious,” jaemin says, turning to face his father at last. “i can help you!”

“what?”

“i can help you propose to papa!” jaemin repeats. “please, please, pleaseeeeeeeeeee, can i help you?” jaemin pouts adorably at the man, jumping up and down on the couch, the switch controllers abandoned next to him. 

jaehyun can’t believe his own ears. “jaem, baby, that’s not… you can’t…”

“why not? papa is already papa, so why can’t i help? we could make you and papa lunch and you two could go on a picnic date and i could stay with uncle tennie and uncle johnny! or-- or we could have a picnic here and invite haru and cat and robin too!” jaemin gasps, struck by a new idea. “i could make papa a cake!”

everything is going so fast. on the one hand, jaemin helping him would be great, but on the other… he has no counterargument. oh god, he’s doing this, he’s going to ask taeyong to be his husband with the help of his eight year old sunshine. this is going to be the most domestic thing he will ever do besides maybe moving to a house in the forest with taeyong and raising animals and having his own little garden. oh, and taeyong would be reading on the porch, the sun embracing him, and despite him being older and gray, he’d still be as beautiful as always, the same warmth in his eyes, the same smile that made jaehyun fall… and around his ring finger would be an old ring, one that taeyong never took off (not that jaehyun did either). and they’d be happy and in love and married and forever…

“so, appa? can i help?”

the image of taeyong smiling at him can’t leave his head. 

“of course, baby. let’s do this!”

jaemin punches the air, yelling in excitement. jaehyun doesn’t even bother telling him to not be loud because his baby will, more or less, be why he proposes. well, he’s also very much in love with taeyong, that can’t really be swiped under the rug so easily. 

jaemin resumes his game soon after, mumbling under his breath about how pretty appa and papa will look on their wedding day. 

* * *

not even a week later, jaemin and jaehyun are trying their hardest to make three normal sized bento boxes and a few other mini ones. right now they’re stuck on the cat shaped rice balls, which looked so much easier and _ so much cuter _in the video jaehyun found last night. 

“appa i think the ears don’t look quite right... “ jaemin says, tilting his head to the side to get another view of the… cat-whatever they just made. “do you think we should try again?”

jaehyun mirrors his son. “i don’t know, baby…” he hums, turning the plate a bit to the left. “that one looks good! not all of us need cute kitties, right? just papa!”

“you’re right appa!” jaemin easily agrees, taking the prettiest rice ball and placing it in taeyong’s box. “now we just need to get the blankets ready in the living room!” the young boy runs out of the kitchen, leaving jaehyun alone with the food. he got taeyong’s favorite cupcakes ready in the fridge, has a bottle of rose chilling and the ring in his jeans pocket.

jaemin chose his outfit for the occasion, a pair of black jeans and his nicest button down, the silky one that makes him look like howl. the boy even asked his father if he could dye his hair blond while rummaging through his jewelry for the _ perfect _pair of earrings. jaehyun had to disappoint him and say no; he’d made a pact with himself to never let anyone else dye his hair after sicheng made it pink in their third year of university, just before picture day. 

for a moment, the apartment is quiet, jaemin probably looking around for their picnic blanket in the storage room, but then the front door opens, and taeyong’s voice reaches him with a sweet _ i’m home, babies. _

jaehyun almost forgets the task at hand (getting the bento boxes to the living room), getting overwhelmed with the urge to run to his husba-- not yet, boyfriend and give him all the _ hello _ kisses and the _ i missed you _ kisses and the _ i love you so much please don’t ever leave to meet up with yuta and jungwoo ever again because i’m but a love sick puppy _ kisses. 

he holds the urge back, and instead puts the lid on the last box and places all three of them in thre fridge, right besides the cupcakes. first, he and jaemin have to see if taeyong is in the mood for an impromptu picnic in their house or if the meeting with his friends just made him hate humans again. yuta and jungwoo have this effect when they want to annoy taeyong, though it doesn’t make him hate them… anymore than he already does. jaehyun doesn’t question their dynamic. 

to his surprise, when he gets to where taeyong is, he finds him and jaemin whispering to each other, with the former crouched down to be closer to the boy. totally not suspicious. _ totally_. jaehyun still frowns, because what secrets could the two of them have without him? 

they stop talking as soon as taeyong takes notice of the younger, jumping to his feet and laughing nervously as he ruffles jaemin’s hair. he’s trying to make it like it’s not because jaehyun is in close proximity. “yes, baby! of course i would like to have a picnic with you and appa!” the silver haired man faces jaehyun, and says, with a high-pitched lilt in his voice, “oh, hi, hyunnie! what a surprise!” his cheeks are slightly flushed, and he refuses to meet jaehyun’s eyes, “y-you look good! very…” taeyong swallows a lump in his throat, “good.”

ok, this is getting suspicious, but jaehyun doesn’t think it’s _ that _important for him to dwell on it. 

“hey, yongie,” he greets his husba-- jesus, _ not yet_, boyfriend, pulling taeyong into a bone crushing hug that can hopefully express how much he’s missed the elder. “so i take it everything went fine with yuta and woo?” 

taeyong gives jaehyun a kiss, just as short and sweet as himself, though, if jaehyun were to say that he’d get chased down the street again. “it was fine, we just talked about… stuff. nothing as excited as you two preparing a picnic for us? what’s that about, hyunnie?”

jaehyun shrugs, “just wanted to make something nice for you, baby. wanna take a shower before we start?” 

“do i need to dress just as pretty as you two? or can i get away with sweats and a shirt?” taeyong stretches as he walks towards the bedroom, jaemin and jaehyun hot on his tail. 

“papa, this is a special picnic, you _ need _ to look beautiful!” jaemin complains, running ahead of taeyong and blocking his entrance. he looks up at the man with a pout on his lips. “appa and i worked hard…”

taeyong doesn’t waste a second in picking his son up and going inside the bedroom, closing the door just before jaehyun could walk in as well. _ weird. _

he can vaguely hear whisperings and whines coming from behind the closed door, but it’s probably just taeyong trying to escape whatever outfit jaemin wants to pick out for him. knowing his son and how adorably evil he is, taeyong has absolutely no chance. 

in the meantime, jaehyun gets everything ready. he clears the middle of the room to lay down the blanket, puts the basket with the food right in the middle, throws some pillows down to make it cozier, than puts them back on the couch, since they don’t fit with the picnic vibe, then sets them down again, because there’s no way they’re going to sit down on just a blanket. 

it doesn’t look right, something feels like it’s missing… but jaehyun just can’t place his finger on what that is. maybe he should light some candles… ahh, but the fire hazard that would be… jaehyun looks around the living room, trying to find what would make it complete. the plushies! 

jaemin insisted on them being invited as well, to make jaehyun feel more at ease. they even made bentos for them too, damn it! the plushies have as much of the right to be there as they do. 

by the time he finishes arranging the guests and the table, jaemin and taeyong emerge from the bedroom, the latter now changed into an outfit matching with jaehyun’s. the younger has to give kudos to jaemin for having developed such a fine eye to details from helping ten with his creations. 

the only difference with taeyong’s outfit is that his blouse is a faded yet gorgeous shade of orange. it brings out the glow of taeyong’s sunkissed skin nicely, and all that jaehyun can think is how much his husba-- _ boyfriend _ resembles a prince. 

jaehyun’s eyes stay glued on taeyong’s hair, still fluffy and a bit wet around the tips. he wants to wrap him in a blanket and keep him safe, but right now, jaehyun has other plans. plans which include one velvet box hidden under his pillow, something worthy of only the _ bestest and most dad-est dad to ever exist, especially in the jung-lee residence_. 

“you look… very handsome… wow…” jaehyun is glad he can at least say more than taeyong when seeing his significant other looking good. 

“doesn’t papa look like sophie, appa? he’s just as pretty as she is!” jaemin rushes ahead of taeyong, taking the pillow in the middle. “and appa looks like howl! that means you’re both wizards and that i’m magic too, right, right?”

jaehyun laughs, wrapping an arm around jaemin’s shoulders and pulling him in his arms, the perfect position for him to ruffle his hair and pinch his cheeks and torment his baby with kisses and love until taeyong puts a stop to it. 

the boy’s yelling falls on deaf ears as taeyong does absolutely nothing to save him, instead opening the picnic basket and taking out whatever food he can find. 

“god, i feel like i could eat a whole seven course meal!” taeyong moans, getting his hands on the cupcakes. he almost bites into one, but jaehyun is faster and he snatches the sweet out of the elder’s hands. 

“no dessert before lunch, yongie. or else--”

“or else no kisses and cuddles!” jaemin finishes jaehyun’s idea, scowling at taeyong from the safe nest of his father’s arms. 

taeyong pales at that, the thought of getting zero kisses and cuddles from the two being on par with his worst nightmare. it probably is his worst nightmare given how often taeyong demands affection. 

with a defeated sigh, the eldest pulls out the proper food, cooing when he gets to the mini boxes. “i take it cat and co wanted to eat with us too?” taeyong asks jaemin as he passes him the bentos meant for his little furry friends. 

“yes, papa! they wanted to witness the--” jaemin stops himself just in time when the two men shoot him two very pointed looks, “the indoor picnic!” 

two very different sighs of relief leave the adults, yet jaehyun still doesn’t find it… weird. 

what he does notice, however, is the fact that taeyong almost opens one of the ugly bentos, where the cat shaped rice ball looks like a rat. he _ snatches _it out of taeyong’s hold, leaving his boyfriend confused and frankly, quite offended. 

“hey! i was going to eat that!” 

jaemin gives taeyong the one he knows for sure is the prettiest. “that one is for you, papa! it’s the most beautiful made only for you!” the boy omits the fact that theirs look like a cat that’s been shredded with a cheese grater; not like taeyong won’t see anyway. 

“oh,” taeyong smiles gently at the two, “thank you, babies.” and when he says it, jaehyun knows he means it, that he’s truly touched by it. “should we dig in?”

“one more thing before we do that,” jaehyung mutters, taking his phone out. he snaps a few photos of the two angels in front of him, and then turns on the playlist taeyong enjoys to listen to when he relaxes. the soft melody of daniel cesar’s _ blessed _ bleeds through the speakers, making taeyong blush. jaemin doesn’t seem bothered by it one bit, already stuffing his face with food like a starved animal. 

taeyong and jaehyun share a look, smiling at the baby’s antics, before following jaemin’s example and picking at their food as well. 

it’s good, better than what jaehyun had expected, but then again, it’s just some simple rice balls filled with salmon and some marinated veggies. even a kid could do that, which is why jaemin helped him so much with making them. 

taeyong on the other hand, seems to be over the moon with the food, complimenting the chefs after each and every bite. throughout the whole little picnic family date, taeyong is wearing his fondest expression, eyes full of love whenever jaehyun catches him looking. 

jaemin fills the silence every now and again with small comments, each one more random than the other. jaehyun imagines how stressed the boy might feel right now, waiting for jaehyun to his papa _ the _question. he’s probably also more excited about the cupcakes he know he will get to devour while his parents kiss and cry. 

“ah, thank you so much for the food, boys,” taeyong sighs in contempt, slapping his belly as if to show just how full he is now. “i, uh… before we get to dessert, i have to ask you something, jae…” 

but jaehyun isn’t listening. his plan is in action, he hit the play button and now he can’t stop until everything is consumed. 

taeyong’s phone rings, making the elder frown. he picks it up, frown deepening. he answers anyway, “why are you calling, jaehyunnie?” he asks, looking at the brunet again. during the short, barely five seconds time he’s had without taeyong’s eyes on him, jaehyun has been able to take the box out from under him and hold it in front of the man’s dumbfounded face. 

“ah, nothing, i just felt like…” jaehyun opens the box, the ring now staring at taeyong and taeyong looking right back, aghast, “giving you a ring.” the younger smiles brightly at the love of his life, waiting for the reaction he still can’t predict. 

“oh, god, you’ve got to be kidding me!” taeyong whines, throwing his head back. when jaehyun makes a choked sound in the back of his throat, something akin to a sob and a strangled cow questioning why god has put it on this earth, taeyong’s head snaps back. “no, no, no! i’m not saying no! i’d never say no! i’m not either! but!” the silver haired man takes out a box of his own, opening it for jaehyun to see. “i guess i wanted to give you a ring too, but jaemin didn’t say anything about you doing it today as well.”

jaehyun is ready to cry. scratch that, he thinks he’s already crying. “wait, jaem knew you wanted to propose?!” he asks, tears still streaming down his face at a rapid pace. 

the smile falters from taeyong’s face. “jaem knew _ you’re _going to propose?!”

they’ve been played by an eight year old! 

when they turn to look at jaemin, ready to get an explanation out of him even if they’d have to tickle it out of the boy, jaemin is already smiling at the adults.

“the uncles and aunties were all sick of you beating around the bush so they each paid me some to get you to propose! now i can buy everyone matching pound cake stuffies!” the excitement, the glee in the boy’s voice, the love pouring out of him, god, jaehyun would be a monster if he were to be mad at him! 

he catches silver hair bouncing from side to side as taeyong begins to laugh, his body shaking at the absurdity of it all. the laughter slowly-slowly dies down; taeyong wipes his tears, and says, “it’s really funny cause i’ve been waiting for more than a year to find the perfect moment to propose and here’s how it goes down! i’ve been worrying over this for so long when we probably could’ve been married for so long already, hyunnie!” 

and if that’s not the most ironic he’s heard in a long time. 

“but… _ i’ve _ been trying to propose for more than a year and a half and _ i’ve _been waiting for the perfect moment…” they stare at each other, one clown, bigger than the other, looking at each other like the sun shines right out of their ass. (that’s what kun described it as. he’s revolutionary when it comes to modern romance, someone like shakespeare but less made to be straight by the public.)

“we really are idiots, huh?” taeyong laughs, “so, what do you say, jung jaehyun? i said yes to your proposal, but you?” he holds the ring out again, a gleam of confidence in his eyes.

“you didn’t propose properly, yong,” jaehyun deadpans. 

at that, taeyong flushes pink. he gets on his knees, both of them, before remembering he should only be on one. when he’s on only one, taeyong clears his throat. “jung jaehyun, would you give me the honor of calling you my husband, officially and not just in my head, for the rest of our lives?”

“only if i get to call you _ my _ beautiful, most _ perfect _husband.”

“no, cause that would be you!” taeyong argues. 

jaehyun shrugs. “not to me, baby,” he says, leaning in slightly to boop the elder’s nose. “but i think i might take you up on the offer of marrying you, love.”

taeyong breaks into a smile, all bashful and shy, trying to hide behind his own hands. jaehyun feels fuzzy inside from being _ the reason _ taeyong smiles like that. he kisses taeyong just because he’s so close to his _ future _husband and he can. the kiss, like all of them that happen to have jaemin as a witness, is short, just enough to satisfy their need to do more. 

“you know jaem is eating all your cupcakes, right?” jaehyun says, letting his forehead rest on taeyong’s. 

“yeah, but he deserves them. ‘sides, i can always go and buy more for my _ husband _ and son.” the elder’s face gets beet red when he calls jaehyun the _ h word_, but even with the panicked nature in him yelling abort, taeyong still maintains his composure. 

“thank you, husband,” jaehyun says and just like that, taeyong breaks into a fit of giggles, trying to push jaehyun away to save his dignity. the younger bites back a smirk.

it’s too easy, and jaehyun will be damned if he doesn’t use this new advantage every day for the rest of his life, just to get to see the pretty blush on the apples of taeyong’s cheeks.

damn, it took him a year and a half, and he needed jaemin’s help to do it, but here he is now. with his future husband cuddling his arm, while he begs their son to at least spare some sprinkles for him… a dream come true. 

he ends up crying again, just because everything has been an emotional ride and poor jaehyun and his poorer heart can only go through so much. 

* * *

later, much later, when jaemin is fast asleep in his room after having spent the afternoon looking for pound cake stuffed toys, jaehyun can finally, _ finally, _ kiss taeyong the way he wants to. slow and methodical, riling him up until he’s shaking and begging for more. 

except that taeyong is way ahead of jaehyun. 

as soon as jae steps out of the bathroom, he jumps on him, not even caring about the surprised noise jaehyun makes, or the way the towel that was wrapped around his waist hits the floor. jaehyun is pretty sure taeyong is over the moon with how he’s all naked in front of the elder. 

he’s not able to resist his boyfriend, hands going to rest on the silver haired man’s hips, dragging him closer, closer, until jaehyun hits the door, taeyong body caging him there. 

“i take it you’re going to top tonight?” jaehyun asks, admirning the soft look on taeyong’s face, tinted with lust just around the edges. 

“you bet, darling.” the elder bites on jaehyun’s bottom lip, just a gentle tug to get him started. “i love you,” taeyong says, eyes focused on jaehyun’s face again, “so, so, so much, hyunnie.”

“i love you more, baby.” jaehyun captures taeyong’s lips in a gentle kiss again. “ah, damn it, imagine if i had some bread right now. i could’ve said i _ loaf _ you more!”

taeyong rolls his eyes fondly at the younger’s dumb joke. he’ll be tormented with them every day, every breathing moment, and he can’t do anything about it, since jaehyun doesn’t plan on letting him go anytime soon. 

“can’t believe i agreed to marrying you when you do shit like that.”

“hey! you wanted to ask too!” jaehyun pouts at the elder, feigning hurt. a peck is all it takes for him to go back to smiling, dimples on full display for taeyong to poke at. 

“i did, and i will never regret asking _ or _agreeing to marry you, dumbass.” 

the giddiness blooming in jaehyun’s chest can barely be contained, and he doubts he will ever be able to not make his heart ache, only in the best way possible, when looking at taeyong. for all there is, it’s worth it; having taeyong above him, pinning his wrists down on the bed, whispering praises and confessions of how much he loves him in his neck, the elder’s hot breath making jaehyun squirm. 

for all there is, jaehyun wouldn’t change anything, not even the fact that it took them so long to propose. 

he’d go through it again and again, knowing that at the end of the road, at the end of this journey, taeyong is waiting for him, arms open and ready to continue together.

the night ends with them in bed, tangled together, the sheets a mess around their legs. they’re talking about the future, planning it, fantasizing about what they could do later on. 

it’s the only outcome jaehyun could’ve hoped for; the only happy ending his slow burn single parent falling in love with his kid’s teacher fanfic could’ve gotten. jaehyun won’t lie, he’s thrilled he didn’t die over the course of it all. 

now he just has a wedding to plan and a life to live with his soulmate. sounds pretty damn good to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> maybe someday i will actually write the wedding scene oof, but until then this is all i can give u jaeyongnation 😔😔
> 
> [twitter](https://twitter.com/cryystal_moon)  
[curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/cryystal_moon)


End file.
